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Police NSF jailed for trespassing into female trainees’ bunks to lay out their underwear, steal items

SINGAPORE — When tasked with escorting contractors to check on bunks at the Home Team Academy, Ivan Toh Wei Hong first seized the chance to steal a power bank and cable for digital devices from a female police trainee staying there.

Ivan Toh Wei Hong was a full-time national serviceman with the Singapore Police Force attached to the Home Team Academy in Chua Chu Kang (pictured) at the time of his offences.

Ivan Toh Wei Hong was a full-time national serviceman with the Singapore Police Force attached to the Home Team Academy in Chua Chu Kang (pictured) at the time of his offences.

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  • Ivan Toh Wei Hong, 22, was escorting contractors to check on bunks at the Home Team Academy
  • He then stole a female trainee’s power bank and cable
  • He went to another bunk the next day and laid out other trainees’ undergarments on their beds
  • He claimed he did this because he had recently broken up with his girlfriend and felt angry

 

SINGAPORE — When tasked with escorting contractors to check on bunks at the Home Team Academy, Ivan Toh Wei Hong first seized the chance to steal a power bank and cable for digital devices from a female police trainee staying there.

The next day, the full-time national serviceman (NSF) with the Singapore Police Force went into two other bunks he was not authorised to enter, took three other trainees’ undergarments and laid them out on their beds.

He later claimed that he did this because he had recently broken up with his girlfriend and felt angry.

For his actions in March this year, Toh was jailed for one week on Tuesday (Oct 12).

The 22-year-old was attached to the Home Team Academy in Chua Chu Kang as a company support officer at the time.

The academy serves as the training institute for various organisations under the Ministry of Home Affairs, including the police and the Singapore Civil Defence Force.

Toh pleaded guilty in the State Courts to one charge each of criminal trespass and theft, with another charge of trespass taken into consideration for sentencing. He began serving his sentence immediately.

WHAT HAPPENED

The court heard that on March 22, Toh and a contractor went to check on the condition of some wall-mounted fans. They entered two bunks that female trainees used as their study room and bedroom.

A 23-year-old trainee had left her power bank and cable on her study table before going for her training activities.

When Toh spotted the items, he took them and was captured on closed-circuit television footage leaving the bunks with them in his hands.

When the victim could not find her belongings later that evening, she reported the matter to the course manager, who conducted preliminary investigations and made a police report.

The following day, Toh was once again escorting contractors to repair fans in some bunks.

While the contractors did their work, Toh went to another bunk that was connected to the one they were in by a common toilet.

He proceeded to remove another 23-year-old trainee’s bra and panties from an unlocked cupboard, laying them out on her bed.

Court documents showed that he placed the bra near the head of the bed and the panties closer to the foot. He also entered another bunk to do the same with two other trainees’ undergarments.

He then rejoined the contractors and took them to other bunks.

The victim returned later that day and was shocked to discover what happened. She reported it to her course manager, who filed a police charge.

APOLOGISED FOR ACTIONS

Deputy Public Prosecutor Chong Yong asked for one to two weeks’ jail for each charge to which Toh had pleaded guilty, noting that he had “abandoned his post pretty much” and significantly violated his victims’ privacy.

The prosecutor added: “(He did not just) rummage through the items, he removed intimate items and placed them on the bed. He purported to give an explanation… but there can really be no good reason for doing that.

“In respect of the undergarments, the victims do not want the items back — somewhat unsurprisingly, I suppose.”

In mitigation, Toh — who did not have a lawyer — apologised for his actions and said that he would not repeat his mistake. He pleaded for “another chance to be a better person”.

District Judge Kamala Ponnampalam told him that he had caused alarm to the victims and abused the trust reposed in him in order to commit an offence, which was an aggravating factor.

Nevertheless, she noted that the items he took were of low value and it was his first brush with the law.

For theft in a dwelling, he could have been jailed for up to seven years and fined.

Those convicted of criminal trespass can be jailed for up to three months or fined up to S$1,500, or punished with both.

Related topics

court crime NSF trespass theft

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