Jail for man who cut woman’s hair on bus to smell it
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The man pleaded guilty to using criminal force with the intent to outrage modesty and being armed with instruments for cutting.
ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG
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SINGAPORE – A man who gets aroused by women’s long hair cut a passenger’s ponytail while he was sitting behind her on the bus.
He then kept the hair in a plastic bag so he could smell it later.
Edwin Chow Rui Xiong, 26, was sentenced to two months and two weeks’ jail on Sept 11 after pleading guilty to using criminal force with the intent to outrage modesty and being armed with instruments for cutting.
Chow’s other charges taken into consideration involve him cutting the hair of two other victims on two different buses on Aug 2.
On Aug 3, Chow boarded bus service 185 in Dover and sat on the upper deck. He then saw a woman with a ponytail board the bus and was sexually aroused by her long hair.
He moved to sit behind the woman and took out a pair of scissors from his bag to cut her hair before stashing it in a small plastic bag, intending to sniff it afterwards.
Shortly after, the woman touched her ponytail and felt something was amiss. She turned around to confront Chow, but he remained silent.
The woman reported the incident to the bus driver, and the police were called.
When officers arrived, they searched Chow’s bag and found five pairs of scissors and other plastic bags containing hair.
Chow admitted that he was attracted to women with long hair, and cutting hair and sniffing it led him to be aroused.
He was arrested that same day.
When asked what he wanted to say in mitigation, Chow, who appeared in court via video link, smiled and said: “Nothing.”
In response, District Judge Salina Ishak asked: “You’re sure? You do not wish to say anything in mitigation?”
Chow replied: “I wish to have a lighter sentence, as I have a doctor’s appointment at the Institute of Mental Health next week.”
The judge told him to inform the prison officers about his appointment, with Chow adding that he had nothing else to say in mitigation.
Those convicted of using criminal force on a victim with the intent to outrage modesty can be jailed for up to three years, fined, caned, or receive any combination of such punishments.
