SINGAPORE - A man molested his female colleague on three separate occasions on Sept 17, 2019, but she told the police about her ordeal only 10 months later.

The court heard that the victim had initially chosen to remain silent as she was afraid of causing "unnecessary trouble".

The Singaporean offender, 32, was on Tuesday (March 15) sentenced to two weeks' jail after he pleaded guilty to one count of molestation.

Two other similar charges were considered during sentencing.

The man cannot be named due to a gag order to protect the woman's identity.

Details about their jobs and workplace have also been redacted from court documents.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Gerald Tan said that the pair were not involved in a romantic relationship.

At around 9am on Sept 17, 2019, the woman, then 29, was sitting at the foot of a climbing lane of a rock-climbing wall when the man sat behind her in another lane.

She was adjusting some knots on a rope when he suddenly hugged her from the back.

The DPP said: "The complainant was shocked upon feeling the accused (hugging) her. After a few seconds, she rolled out of his grip, moving forward and to the right, such that the accused's grip was loosened.

"She tried not to make eye contact with the accused thereafter because she was afraid of him."

The woman was working at a counter at around 10.30am that day when he molested her again, this time, by slapping the right cheek of her buttocks.

She was on an escalator later that day when he molested her for the third time by putting his left arm around her waist.

She finally gathered courage to lodge a complaint to their management in November 2019.

Court documents do not state what happened next, but she later came across a newspaper article about a female police officer who had been sexually harassed at work.

The woman in the current case finally lodged a police report on July 27, 2020.

The man's bail was set at $15,000 on Tuesday and was ordered to surrender himself at the State Courts on March 22 to begin serving his sentence.

For molestation, an offender can be jailed for up to two years and fined or caned.