Balasubramanian Ramesh, A 73-year-old Indian national, has been charged by Singapore court for molesting four women during a 14-hour Singapore Airlines (SIA) flight from the United States to Singapore on November 18.
The Incident
According to court documents, he allegedly targeted one woman four times and three other women once each. The incidents reportedly occurred at different times throughout the flight, beginning at 3:15 am and continuing until 5:30 pm.
The first alleged incident took place at 3:15 am, followed by another five minutes later involving a second victim. Between 3:30 am and 6:00 am, Ramesh reportedly molested the second woman three more times. At 9:30 am, he allegedly targeted a third woman, and the final incident occurred at 5:30 pm, involving a fourth woman.
Details about the victims, including whether they were passengers or crew members, have not been disclosed due to a court-imposed gag order to protect their identities.
The Singapore Law
Under Singapore law, each molestation charge carries a potential penalty of up to three years in jail, a fine, or both. While caning is an applicable punishment for such offenses, Ramesh is exempt due to his age, as offenders over 50 years old are not subject to caning.
Ramesh appeared to court on November 25, where he was faced 7 charges. He is scheduled to plead guilty on December 13. If convicted, he could face a maximum jail term of 21 years for the seven charges.
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