A 40-year-old man who is believed to have approached several female students in the Bukit Timah area on the pretext of doing a survey was charged yesterday with causing annoyance to people in general.

Fong Poh Kuen is accused of being a public nuisance by taking pictures of female students with a mobile phone at a bus stop in Stevens Road on Monday.

He has been charged with six offences, including criminal trespass, insulting the modesty of a woman and using threatening behaviour. The case is at the pre-trial conference stage.

Fong, represented by Mr Favian Kang, was picked up by the police at Raffles Girls' Primary School on Monday afternoon following two police reports lodged last Saturday.

The New Paper reported that the suspect had been seen loitering at bus stops near schools in the area and an overhead bridge in Bukit Timah Road.

He would ask the students for their mobile numbers and take photos of them. Some of the girls agreed to let him do so.

Yesterday, he was remanded at the Institute of Mental Health for psychiatric assessment.

The case will be mentioned on Nov 9.

The maximum penalty for being a public nuisance is a $1,000 fine.

Elena Chong