Former cricket coach gets jail for assisting in housebreaking plan
By Claire Huang
POSTED: 30 May 2013 2:44 PM
SINGAPORE: A former cricket coach was sentenced to 15 months' jail on Thursday for assisting in a plan to steal from his student's house.
Jeraj Puvaneshen, 26, admitted to helping two fellow coaches with housebreaking in May 2012 and a count of disposing stolen items worth more than S$10,000 in December 2009.
Two other charges of disposing stolen properties worth more than S$5,000 in May 2012 were taken into consideration for sentencing purposes.
At the time of the offences, Puvaneshen was teaching cricket at St Andrew's Secondary and St Andrew's Junior College. His assistant coaches, Rajeswari Pasupathy and Vigineswari Pasupathy, found out that one of the student's parents were away and that the 12-year-old was staying at home alone.
Thus, the two sisters got Puvaneshen to bring the cricket team boys, including the victim, for a run outside the school at about 2pm. The two sisters went on to steal more than S$20,000 worth of gold jewellery and other items from the boy's house, using keys stolen from his bag.
In mitigation, the defence said Puvaneshen makes no excuses for his actions and regrets what he did. It was said that the accused was blindsided by the temptation and although he did distract the victim, he was not the initiator of this plot.
However, the prosecution pointed out that Puvaneshen was a teacher and he abused the trust placed in him.
District Judge Low Wee Ping agreed with the prosecution's call for a deterrent sentence of 15 months' jail. He noted in his judgement that the accused not only disposed off some of the items stolen from the student, but also did the same for another batch of stolen gold jewellery in 2009.
Calling these "outrageous facts", the judge said Puvaneshen then went on to share the proceeds from the disposals.
Puvaneshen is the first of the three accused to be dealt with. The other two are expected in court on July 12.
- CNA/ac
By Claire Huang
POSTED: 30 May 2013 2:44 PM
SINGAPORE: A former cricket coach was sentenced to 15 months' jail on Thursday for assisting in a plan to steal from his student's house.
Jeraj Puvaneshen, 26, admitted to helping two fellow coaches with housebreaking in May 2012 and a count of disposing stolen items worth more than S$10,000 in December 2009.
Two other charges of disposing stolen properties worth more than S$5,000 in May 2012 were taken into consideration for sentencing purposes.
At the time of the offences, Puvaneshen was teaching cricket at St Andrew's Secondary and St Andrew's Junior College. His assistant coaches, Rajeswari Pasupathy and Vigineswari Pasupathy, found out that one of the student's parents were away and that the 12-year-old was staying at home alone.
Thus, the two sisters got Puvaneshen to bring the cricket team boys, including the victim, for a run outside the school at about 2pm. The two sisters went on to steal more than S$20,000 worth of gold jewellery and other items from the boy's house, using keys stolen from his bag.
In mitigation, the defence said Puvaneshen makes no excuses for his actions and regrets what he did. It was said that the accused was blindsided by the temptation and although he did distract the victim, he was not the initiator of this plot.
However, the prosecution pointed out that Puvaneshen was a teacher and he abused the trust placed in him.
District Judge Low Wee Ping agreed with the prosecution's call for a deterrent sentence of 15 months' jail. He noted in his judgement that the accused not only disposed off some of the items stolen from the student, but also did the same for another batch of stolen gold jewellery in 2009.
Calling these "outrageous facts", the judge said Puvaneshen then went on to share the proceeds from the disposals.
Puvaneshen is the first of the three accused to be dealt with. The other two are expected in court on July 12.
- CNA/ac
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