SINGAPORE - A telemarketer was jailed for 18 weeks yesterday for taking upskirt pictures and videos of women at various places, including MRT stations.

Jackson Ng Leong Peng, 52, who faced 11 charges, pleaded guilty to five counts of insulting modesty.

The Magistrate's Court heard that he had been taking upskirt pictures and video recordings of women, starting in about July last year, to satisfy his sexual urges.

He targeted victims in areas such as Chinatown, Novena, Redhill and Braddell.

He would stand behind his victim on an escalator and place his mobile phone underneath her skirt to capture a video recording.

He was caught by a security officer at Novena Square 2 on Aug 16 last year.

Assistant Public Prosecutor Prakash Otharam argued that there was nothing to suggest that Ng would have stopped his disgraceful activities if he had not been caught red-handed.

The venues for his deeds were MRT trains and places commonly used by many people daily.

"The fact that Ng was able to carry out the act without fear of being caught in a public place is indeed alarming and attracts the rationale of protecting public interest," he said.

He added that there has been a rise in such offences and that the court should send a strong message to deter like-minded people from committing such offences to protect public safety. Ng could have been been jailed for up to one year and/or fined on each charge.