Landlord acquitted of molesting tenant who thought a spirit touched her, but gets jail for another instance
A file photo of the State Courts building in Singapore.
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Published March 22, 2024
Updated March 22, 2024
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SINGAPORE — A landlord who was accused of molesting his female tenant on two occasions was acquitted of one charge as the woman was unsure if it was him or a spirit who touched her.
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However, 39-year-old Tsai Guang Yao Zhou was convicted of the second charge of molestation and sentenced to eight months' jail.
In a judgment made available on Thursday (March 21), District Judge Lee Lit Cheng explained her reasons for the decision.
The tenant had rented a bedroom from Tsai and his wife along with her then-boyfriend.
The door of the room she rented was secured by a digital lock, with the passcode set by Tsai and his wife.
On the night of June 5, 2021, the five occupants of the flat had dinner and alcohol.
The victim fell asleep in her room and was woken up by the sensation of someone kissing her lips and molesting her.
She opened her eyes and saw a silhouette of a man with a hairstyle like Tsai's. The person left the room without saying anything.
The victim and her boyfriend did not confront Tsai at the time, as they were unsure if the victim had been molested by Tsai or by "a ghost or an imp", the court heard.
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After this incident, the victim and her boyfriend installed a closed-circuit television camera in their room.
THE SECOND INCIDENT
In the wee hours of Aug 15, 2021, the flat occupants had dinner and alcoholic drinks again.The victim fell asleep in her room while her boyfriend showered in the kitchen bathroom.
On three occasions that night, Tsai opened the door to the victim's room without knocking.
On one of the occasions, the CCTV camera in the room captured Tsai walking towards the victim, who was lying on the bed.
The footage showed Tsai's hand reaching towards the victim's breast and moving over it.
He was pushing the victim's hair away from her face when the woman sat up suddenly, appearing alarmed.
Tsai left the room after talking briefly to the victim, and the victim told her boyfriend what happened when he finished his shower.
The woman filed a police report on Aug 16, 2021, after she and her boyfriend secured alternative accommodation.
She told another female tenant about what happened and the latter also moved out.
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AT TRIAL
At trial, Tsai denied entering the room for the first incident. He claimed that he entered the room for the second incident as he wanted to conserve energy or was concerned that the victim might suffocate.He denied touching her breast, saying he was trying to find a suitable part of her body to flip her over.
Judge Lee acquitted Tsai of the first charge on the basis that the victim's evidence was not unusually convincing for this incident.
"(The victim) testified that she continued to reside in the flat after the first incident because she was unsure whether the culprit was the accused or a spirit," said the judge.
"She said she would have moved out of the flat immediately if she was certain that the accused was the one who molested her."
The judge noted that the victim did not give evidence to explain why she was prepared to continue staying there just because she thought she might have been molested by a spirit.
"(She) seemed to regard molestation by a spirit to be of a different nature from molestation by a human being," said Judge Lee.
"Consequently, there was reasonable doubt whether (she) was sure if the physical acts... had in fact taken place."
The victim testified that she and her boyfriend had suspected that she was touched by a spirit as there was a storeroom next to their room that was always locked. Tsai and his wife prayed to Thai gods, the woman said.
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When the victim's boyfriend asked her if she was sure that the culprit who touched her was a human being, the victim said she was sure someone had touched her but that she did not know if it was a human being or a spirit.
They then decided to remain in the flat to find out if the one molesting her had been a human or a spirit.
The woman also said she did not want to wrongly blame the accused as she was unsure.
The judge convicted Tsai of the second charge as it had been proven beyond reasonable doubt and his actions were captured by the CCTV camera.
Judge Lee rejected Tsai's defence that he was trying to flip the victim over. She said that his claim that it did not occur to him to knock before entering was "simply incredible".
Tsai is appealing against both his conviction and sentence. He is out on bail, pending appeal. CNA
