2 more men charged with urinating in public at MRT stations
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| On Jan 14, Li Guorui, 41, pleaded guilty to one charge of being a public nuisance. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG |
Nadine Chua
JAN 15, 2025
SINGAPORE - Two more men have been charged with urinating in public at MRT stations.
This comes a day after a man was fined $2,000 for the same offence at Outram Park MRT station.
On Jan 15, Zhou Hongwei, 57, was charged with urinating in front of the passenger service centre at Potong Pasir MRT station on Jan 13 at around 7.30pm.
The same day, Soo Fook Khan, 53, was charged with urinating at the platform of Tanah Merah MRT station on Jan 8 at around 12.30pm.
Both men are Singaporeans.
According to charge sheets, Zhou allegedly committed the act knowing that it would cause a common annoyance to the public.
In court, Zhou said he wanted to plead guilty to the offence and that he would not be engaging a defence lawyer.
Before the case was adjourned, District Judge Paul Quan told Zhou: “Please don’t reoffend. If you reoffend, you will come back again.”
Zhou nodded in response. He is expected to plead guilty when he returns to court on Feb 26.
In the other case, Soo has been remanded at the Institute of Mental Health for a medical examination and his case will be heard again on Jan 28.
Separately, Soo was also handed a charge under the Moneylenders Act for allegedly acting on behalf of an unlicensed moneylender.
On Oct 5, 2024, he allegedly poured out ashes from a prayer urn to the floor at a flat in Yishun, to cause alarm to the flat’s occupant.
Soo’s and Zhou’s alleged urination cases are the latest in a series of public urination cases in the past week.
On Jan 14, Chinese national Li Guorui, 41, was fined $2,000 for urinating on an escalator handrail at Outram Park MRT station.
The offence took place on Jan 10 after he had attended a business dinner at Westgate, where he consumed a large amount of beer and became heavily intoxicated.
Both men are Singaporeans.
According to charge sheets, Zhou allegedly committed the act knowing that it would cause a common annoyance to the public.
In court, Zhou said he wanted to plead guilty to the offence and that he would not be engaging a defence lawyer.
Before the case was adjourned, District Judge Paul Quan told Zhou: “Please don’t reoffend. If you reoffend, you will come back again.”
Zhou nodded in response. He is expected to plead guilty when he returns to court on Feb 26.
In the other case, Soo has been remanded at the Institute of Mental Health for a medical examination and his case will be heard again on Jan 28.
Separately, Soo was also handed a charge under the Moneylenders Act for allegedly acting on behalf of an unlicensed moneylender.
On Oct 5, 2024, he allegedly poured out ashes from a prayer urn to the floor at a flat in Yishun, to cause alarm to the flat’s occupant.
Soo’s and Zhou’s alleged urination cases are the latest in a series of public urination cases in the past week.
On Jan 14, Chinese national Li Guorui, 41, was fined $2,000 for urinating on an escalator handrail at Outram Park MRT station.
The offence took place on Jan 10 after he had attended a business dinner at Westgate, where he consumed a large amount of beer and became heavily intoxicated.
[From another news report:]
Li was arrested by the police on Jan 12 and charged in court the next day.Seeking a fine of between $1,500 and $2,000, the prosecutor said: “It goes without saying that the accused’s actions here were completely unacceptable and rather disconcerting, and his sentence should reflect that.”He said Li urinated in an area with high footfall, on the only part of the escalator that members of the public would touch, adding: “His act extends beyond just causing annoyance, and concerns issues of sanitation and disease-spreading.”DPP Bin said that while a cleaner was sent to the scene shortly after Li’s act, staff at the station were unaware that Li had urinated on the handrail, and only the floor of the escalator landing was cleaned at the time.The prosecutor also noted that since there were two other public urination cases in the last week, a message should be sent by the court to deter such behaviour.In mitigation, Li, who was unrepresented, said he had committed the offence on the spur of the moment and has cooperated with the authorities during investigations.Before meting out the sentence, District Judge Paul Chan agreed with the prosecution that Li’s act did not just cause annoyance to the public, but also brought about issues of health and sanitation.At around 10pm that day, Li was exiting Outram Park MRT station to return to his hotel in Upper Cross Street when he unzipped his pants and urinated on the handrail of a downward-moving escalator.The prosecution said Li’s actions went beyond just causing annoyance, and involved issues of health and sanitation.
Those found guilty of public nuisance can be fined up to $2,000.
For committing an act of public nuisance and knowing that this act would cause annoyance to the public, an offender can be jailed for up to three months, fined up to $2,000, or both.
For committing an act of public nuisance and knowing that this act would cause annoyance to the public, an offender can be jailed for up to three months, fined up to $2,000, or both.
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