A 42-year-old Indian singer living in Singapore has been fined for sexually abusing a female freelance production staff member.
Sivabaran Siva Prasad Menon on Monday pleaded guilty to one count of sexual abuse and was fined S$3,000, according to local media.
The incident reportedly happened in 2022 at the Mediacorp campus on Stars Avenue after the victim applied for a job in a show production where Menon was hired as a singer and dancer.
According to reports, Menon was extremely drunk that day. After the show, when the elevator arrived for the victim and his friend, an inebriated Menon came out, grabbed the victim by the chin and kissed him on the cheek. The victim was uncomfortable and tried to leave, but his friend intervened and asked Menon to leave. The victim and his friend left and noticed the odor of alcohol as Menon left and called the next elevator.
The victim then reported the incident to the crew. Later that day, she called police.
Menon was sentenced to a fine on February 5, and his lawyer stressed that this was Menon’s first encounter with the law. It was also emphasized that the contact was temporary and that there was no penetration of the victim’s private parts.
The charges and sentencing took place with the woman’s identity protected by a gag order, and details of the show and exact dates were not revealed to protect her identity. But there is no such order protecting Menon’s identity.