Ex-CEO of Prive Group gets 2 weeks' jail, fine for punching boy in lift after prosecution succeeds in appeal

SINGAPORE — The former chief executive officer of food-and-beverage firm The Prive Group is getting two weeks of jail time for drunkenly punching a 13-year-old boy in a lift and asking him lewd questions, after the prosecution successfully appealed against his original non-custodial sentence.

A High Court judge found that Vu Han Jean-Luc Kha, 44, had been voluntarily intoxicated and assaulted a vulnerable victim, leaving him with psychological scars.

Justice Vincent Hoong then imposed the jail time and a fine of S$3,500 on the Frenchman.

Vu Han pleaded guilty in the State Courts last year to voluntarily causing hurt and intentionally causing alarm to the victim.

A district judge then sentenced him to a 12-month mandatory treatment order, which is a community sentencing option offered to offenders suffering from mental conditions that contributed to their offences.

But in overturning the lower court’s decision on Wednesday, Justice Hoong said that the main sentencing principle in this case should be deterrence, not rehabilitation.

WHAT HAPPENED

Following the incident on Nov 22, 2019, a psychiatrist diagnosed Vu Han with bipolar disorder and found that he was likely experiencing a manic episode with possible psychosis.

The psychiatrist, Dr Pamela Ng, found that his mental illness had a contributory link to his offences and recommended the treatment order.

Vu Han had been drunk when he entered a lift with his friend at Parklane Shopping Mall along Selegie Road that evening. He asked the victim, who was with his 12-year-old brother, whether he had hair on his private parts.

When the victim replied “no”, Vu Han asked if the boy wanted to see his private parts. He eventually punched the boy on the head and verbally abused him with vulgarities.

The victim then grabbed Vu Han’s hands to prevent further blows. Vu Han told him: “You want to challenge me? You have no hair on your (private parts), why do you want to challenge me?’” 

Vu Han's friend then tried to hold him back and pushed him out of the lift when it reached the ground floor, but Vu Han refused to leave and used his foot to stop the lift doors from closing so that he could slap the victim’s face.

HIGH COURT'S DECISION

On Wednesday, Justice Hoong said that while a mental disorder is always a relevant factor in sentencing offenders, courts have to consider the nature and severity of the disorder.

The prosecution, led by Deputy Attorney-General Tai Wei Shyong and Deputy Public Prosecutor Goh Yong Ngee, argued that Vu Han acted in a calculated manner to boost his chances of a mandatory treatment order.

The prosecutors said that he saw a private psychiatrist only almost a year after committing the offence.

Justice Hoong noted the defence’s counter-argument that Vu Han could have lacked insight about his condition and his crimes prompted him to seek help.

However, the judge said that Vu Han’s mandatory treatment order suitability report did not provide enough insight into the extent to which Vu Han’s offences were due to his bipolar disorder, rather than his intoxicated state.

Because of this, coupled with “numerous aggravating factors” such as Vu Han targeting a vulnerable victim, the judge found that jail time was warranted.

Justice Hoong also told the court that alcohol-fuelled offending must be discouraged. Vu Han had admitted to sharing several jugs of beer with a friend at a karaoke lounge, then drinking three to four glasses of whiskey at Parklane Shopping Mall before entering the lift.

He also slapped the victim in a confined space, the judge said.

As for the psychological impact on the victim, the boy gave a statement in November 2020 saying that he still feared going into a lift, especially with male adults, and suffered flashbacks of the incident.

Justice Hoong said: “Psychological wounds can remain on someone’s psyche long after physical scars fade.

“(Vu Han) has intimated a desire to make good and move on from his offences. it only leaves me to wish him well on his redemptive journey,” the judge added.

Justice Hoong also stressed that no two cases of offenders with mental disorders are identical.

"The present case should not be misconstrued as casting doubt on the veracity or potential severity of bipolar disorder.

"Nor does it set forth a general principle that the court will invariably view claims by offenders that they committed offences while labouring under mental disorders with circumspection. Each case turns on its own facts," he said.

Vu Han will begin serving his sentence on Oct 20 after his lawyer, Ms Teh Ee-Von, said he needed time to get his affairs in order.

For causing alarm under the Protection from Harassment Act, he could have been jailed for up to six months or fined up to S$5,000, or punished with both.

He could have been jailed for up to two years or fined up to S$5,000, or both, for voluntarily causing hurt.

Vu Han was fired from his role at The Prive Group a day after pleading guilty in the State Courts. The firm said at first that he would remain its CEO and help it stay afloat during the Covid-19 pandemic.

This triggered a strong public backlash, with many writing reviews on The Prive Group’s Facebook page saying that they would boycott the restaurant chain.