Aug 16, 2010
Jail and caning for molester
<!-- by line --> By Elena Chong
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AN INDIAN national who molested five girls and young women in the Woodlands vicinity was jailed for eight years and ordered 12 strokes of the cane. Construction worker Thangavelu Tamilselvam, who targeted his victims by cycling around the estate, molested them in lifts between May 13 and 31, 2010.
He pleaded guilty to three counts and had two others considered during his sentencing. His modus operand was to follow the victims into the lift and outrage their modesty before fleeing on his bicycle. In two of the proceeded charges, he wrongfully restrained a 10-year-old and a 15-year-old girl when molesting them.
The punishment for each offence is a jail term of up to 10 years and caning. The court heard that he was staying at Woodlands E1 Industrial Park when he cycled around the nearby HDB blocks to pick his victims from afar. The punishment for outrage of modesty is a jail term of up to two years or fine or caning or any combined sentence.
