SINGAPORE — While separately fetching two female passengers who sat on the front seat, a GrabHitch driver rested his left arm near them, pretending that any contact with the women was accidental.

In this manner, Tan Keng Leng brushed against the two female passengers seven times on the same day.

The 39-year-old was jailed one year and ten months on Tuesday (17 December) after he pleaded guilty to three counts of molest while two charges involving the same women were considered for sentencing.

He had previously been jailed eight months for a similar modus operandi in 2015, when he pretended to fall in a lift and touched the breasts of women who offered help.

Tan, who is an engineer with a chemical company, is married with a seven-year-old daughter.

On 12 October last year, at 5.10pm, the first victim, 46, booked a carpooling service and Tan responded. The woman tried to enter the backseat, but the car door was locked. Tan told the woman to sit in front as there were some files at the back seat and the woman complied.

As the car was travelling along the Pan Island Expressway at about 5.35pm, the woman felt Tan’s left elbow touching the right side of her arm. She thought the contact was accidental and shifted her body to the left. But Tan extended his left elbow towards her, and touched the right side of her breast over her clothing.

The contact happened at least four times during the journey.

The woman made a police report at 8.05pm that day.

About an hour later, Tan tried the act on another woman, 24. After making a booking through GrabHitch, the woman tried to enter the rear passenger seat but saw that there were papers and files occupying the area. She sat on the front seat.

As the car drove along East Coast Road at about 6.20pm, Tan shifted closer to the woman, extending his left elbow until it brushed her breast. The woman shifted away.

Tan then placed his left elbow on the centre compartment. He chatted with the victim and gestured with his left hand. At least thrice, when the car drove over a bump or a rough road surface, he would touch the woman’s breast with his fingers.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Goh Yi Ling, who asked for two years’ jail, said that Tan had “specifically targeted his passengers by making them sit in the front passenger seat.”

“The victims were unable to escape as they were travelling on the road within the confines of the accused’s vehicle,” she added.

Tan’s lawyer, T M Sinnadurai asked for the court to call for a suitability report for a Mandatory Treatment Order for his client, who was diagnosed with Persistent Depressive Disorder by a private psychiatrist.

In response to media queries, Grab told Yahoo News Singapore that it is aware of the incident and the driver-partner has been banned from the platform.

Grab said, “We have zero tolerance for indecent behaviour and users found to display errant behaviour will be suspended from the platform. Our consumers' and delivery-partners' safety are important to us and we urge both passengers and driver-partners to treat each other with respect and kindness.”

For molest, Tan could have been jailed up to two years, or fined, or caned, or any combination of the penalties.

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