A lawyer feeling stress at work stepped onto his neighbor's balcony and filmed a young woman bathing via her toilet window.
The 32-year-old man was sentenced to 12 weeks in prison on Thursday (August 18) after pleading guilty to two charges of voyeurism.
Two additional criminal trespass counts were considered for sentence.
His defence lawyer Shashi Nathan informed the court that the individual has since left the legal profession and now works in a private business.
The court heard that the defendant and victim resided in adjacent terrace houses at the time of the crime. The toilet in the master bedroom of the victim viewed a tiny balcony through a window.
The man climbed over the parapet into his neighbor's home on November 23, 2020, after realizing that the victim was in the shower.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Yvonne Poon stated that he may have deduced it was the lady based on her voice or her habit of watching films in the bathtub.
He stepped out onto the balcony and held his phone outside the window of the toilet with the camera pointing in. Before he could begin shooting, though, the victim recognized him and yelled.
The man swiftly returned home by jumping over the parapet and avoided recording the video.
After getting dressed, the victim told her husband about the incident, and they went next door to face the perpetrator.
The man apologized again to the victim and requested the pair to lower their voices.
He asked repeatedly if there was another way to handle the issue and if they could meet in a different place.
Additionally, he offered his phone to the victim so she could search for images or videos of her, but she did not find anything damning. Despite this, the couple phoned the police.
During the inquiry, the guy acknowledged that he had captured footage of the victim bathing many months prior.
On that occasion, he also heard the victim in the bathroom and went over the parapet to record a video that he later erased.
He informed detectives he committed the crimes due to work-related stress since the April 2020 "circuit breaker" for the COVID-19 virus.
The prosecution requested a sentence of 12 to 15 weeks in prison, emphasizing that the defendant invaded the victim's house and recorded her naked.
Ms. Poon stated that there was premeditation since he took great attention of the signals that led to the victim being in the shower and waited until it was her to record.
She stated that if the victim had not looked up and noticed the man's phone, his crimes would have gone unnoticed.
Mr. Nathan told the court that his client was a young man who had been doing well in his legal career but had voluntarily quit the field after committing the offenses.
"It displays bravery. It demonstrates his own self-awareness of what has occurred and what he must do to make amends, the attorney said, adding that the guy desired "a clean slate." ".
Mr. Nathan argued that his client's acts were impetuous and that he was going through a tough moment in his life at the time of the crime.
As the victim was recorded showering in her own home, District Judge Eddy Tham stated that the amount of intrusion was excessive and that the victim suffered significant suffering.
He stated that it was a "vast exaggeration" to suggest that the criminal may relieve tension by filming the victim.
The judge stated that the guy shown contrition by admitting to the prior offense when challenged, notwithstanding the absence of a video recording.
The maximum sentence for voyeurism is two years in prison, a fine, or caning, or any combination thereof.
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