A woman, who was issued a medical certificate (MC) in Singapore, was told to stay home because of a respiratory tract infection. She broke the law three days later when she walked her son to his preschool.
The court heard that Michelle Foo Shi Ching, a Malaysian who is a Singapore permanent resident, visited other locations afterwards and even left her home the next day.
Woman Given Medical Certificate in Singapore Failed to Stay Home Amid Pandemic
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Foo went to a clinic on 14 July, after she complained of a sore throat and cough, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Jonathan Lee as per The Straits Times.
A doctor diagnosed her with an upper respiratory tract infection and issued her an MC. The doctor also stressed that she was “required by law to stay home for five days”.
Foo was told that she was not supposed to leave her home for any purpose except for when she needed urgent medical attention. She then accepted the MC and understood the terms.
But on 17 July, Foo went out at around 9.15am and walked her son to a nearby PAP Community Foundation Sparkletots pre-school. Then around 3.30pm that day after she walked home, Foo took a private-hire car to a block of flats in MacPherson Lane.
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She took another private-hire car about two hours later to Great World City. She met up with friends here to watch a movie. When the movie ended, she took a taxi back to her Bedok North flat.
At around 3.30am the next day, Foo took a private-hire car to the MacPherson Lane flat. She returned home about seven hours later.
Pleaded Guilty in a District Court to Two Charges
On Monday (31 January), Foo pleaded guilty in a district court to two charges under the Infectious Diseases Act. She is expected to be sentenced on March 9.
It was not disclosed by court documents how her offences came to light. But when she was caught, Foo initially denied leaving her home during the duration of her MC.
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“She only admitted after (she) was confronted with the evidence. The accused admitted that she knew that it was an offence to leave her (home) during the duration of the MC but she ‘did not think too much about it’ when she did so,” said the DPP as per ST.
Defence Lawyer Mohamed Arshad then told the court that according to a psychiatrist, it was likely that Foo was suffering from an adjustment disorder during the time of the offences.
A report to assess her suitability for mandatory treatment order (MTO) was then called by District Judge Marvin Bay. Offenders who are given an MTO are to undergo treatment for their mental conditions in lieu of their jail time, according to ST.
“I should make it clear that the offences involving breaches of quarantine orders… are extremely serious… and deterrent sentences are generally meted out to discourage others from committing similar offences,” said the judge. “Nevertheless, it may be expedient to investigate further where an expert has expressed a view of the accused suffering from a mental or psychological condition that he believes to have likely contributed to her offending.”
Lead image source from iStock.
Source: The Straits Times
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