SINGAPORE, July 11 — A 20-year-old man here was reportedly sentenced to 18 months’ probation today after being caught performing a lewd act on his neighbour’s cat, which was not injured.
The Straits Times reported that as part of his probation, he must observe a nightly curfew from 10pm to 6am and complete 70 hours of community service.
His mother was bonded for S$5,000 to ensure his good behaviour during the probation period, and he must undergo intervention for sexually offending behaviour.
The offender, who committed other unrelated offences including theft when he was 17, cannot be named under the Children and Young Persons Act.
He had earlier pleaded guilty to assault, harassment, and committing an obscene act in public, with two counts of theft and another assault charge considered during sentencing.
Prosecutors said the man encountered the cat in a public area near his Senja Road flat around 1.50am on April 8, 2023, and committed the act after feeling sexually aroused.
The incident was captured on CCTV and shown to the cat’s owner, who shared it online to identify the perpetrator and took the cat to a vet, who confirmed it was unharmed.
Police were alerted on April 11, 2023, and arrested the offender the same day.
The case follows another animal cruelty incident this week where the Singapore High Court increased Barrie Lin Pengli’s sentence to 27 months for killing two cats.
Justice Vincent Hoong described Lin’s crimes as among the worst cases of animal cruelty and stressed the need for deterrence in sentencing.
Hoong noted that animal cruelty cases remain high despite legislative amendments in 2014 that raised maximum penalties.
Between 2019 and 2023, the National Parks Board investigated an annual average of 1,200 animal cruelty and welfare cases.
