SINGAPORE, Aug 15 — A 16-year-old who filmed up the skirts of a female classmate and six women when he was 14 was sentenced to 1.5 years’ probation yesterday.

The teenager, who cannot be named under the Children and Young Persons Act, shared the photos and videos with 10 boys from his secondary school and another friend through a WhatsApp group.

He also took upskirt videos at MRT stations, public walkways and on a bus.

The Singapore permanent resident, who is from the Philippines, pleaded guilty in June to three counts of insulting a woman’s modesty. Four other charges were considered for sentencing.

The prosecution did not object to probation, as he was only 14 at the time of the offences, has no previous criminal history and has strong family support. A probation report stated that his risk of reoffending was low.

Probation allows offenders under 21 to continue with their education or employment while serving their sentences.

As part of probation conditions, the teenager must remain indoors from 9pm to 6am, perform 80 hours of community service, and attend therapy to correct his offending behaviour.

He is also not allowed to use mobile devices with a camera function unless his probation officer finds it suitable.

His parents posted a bond of S$5,000 to ensure his good behaviour.

What happened

The court previously heard that the incidents happened between April 5 and Aug 18, 2018.

He first began by taking an upskirt photo of a female classmate with his mobile phone. He had been on "information technology monitor” duty and was in the school’s IT control room at the time.

Among other offences, he took another video while sitting opposite a woman on a public bus a fortnight later. He was travelling from Cashew MRT Station to the Regent Heights condominium in Bukit Batok.

On October 16, 2018, two teachers from his school summoned the teenager for questioning after two students told them about what he did.

He admitted to them that he had taken upskirt photos and videos of his classmate and female members of the public.

The school called up the boys in the WhatsApp group, before the teachers deleted the material from their mobile phones.

The school’s vice-principal filed a police report three days later.

The police seized the teenager’s laptop and found the photos and videos there, as they had been automatically synced from his mobile phone.

Adults convicted of insulting a woman’s modesty can be jailed up to a year or fined, or given both penalties.

Those who secretly film others can be convicted of voyeurism if they did so after amendments to the Penal Code kicked in this year. They can be jailed up to two years or fined, or given both punishments. — TODAY