A couple gave a false address to enrol their child in a prestigious school during Phase 2C of the 2015 Primary 1 registration exercise.
Yesterday, the child's mother - a 36-year-old woman - was given the maximum fine of $5,000 for giving false information to a public servant. Meanwhile, her 39-year-old husband was fined $4,000 for giving a false contact address to a registration officer at the Serangoon Gardens Neighbourhood Police Post (NPP).
The couple cannot be named to protect the identity of their child.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Shahla Iqbal said that on May 1, 2014, the couple lied to a registration officer at the Serangoon Gardens NPP that their residential address was in Bishan, when they were still living in Serangoon Gardens.
The police sergeant then proceeded to change their address to one in Bishan.
On July 30, 2015, they registered their child in the school, using a copy of their identity cards with the false contact address, which was within 1km of the school.
The address gave the child priority for admission under Phase 2C, which is for children with no links to the school. The child managed to secure a place in the school and is still studying there. DPP Iqbal said: "There was pre-meditation and planning. The offence is one that is difficult to detect."
The sentencing positions in such cases have evolved. In August 2015, a 35-year-old man was given a $5,000 fine after he appealed against his two-week jail sentence for lying to a school principal about where he lived to get his daughter admitted to a prestigious primary school. The prosecution, which had earlier sought a jail sentence for the man, did not oppose his appeal for a fine.
This came after prosecutors learnt of four similar cases between 1995 and 2004 in which the lying parents were given the maximum fine, which was $1,000, before it was raised in 2008 to $5,000.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) views the use of false addresses during the Primary 1 registration exercise as a serious matter, a spokesman said.
Where there is reason to believe that a false address may have been used, MOE will refer the case to the police for in-vestigation.
"MOE will decide on the best course of action for the child at a later stage. In the meantime, the school will continue to care for and ensure the well-being of the student," she said.
In the latest case, the pupil's mother could have been jailed for up to one year and/or fined up to $5,000, while the maximum punishment for her husband is a $5,000 fine and five years in jail under the National Registration Act.
