An Indian national was sentenced to six months in jail and three strokes of the cane for molesting a maid while fixing a toilet in a Singapore home, news reports said on Friday.
Kanagaraj Velmurugan, a 25-year-old labourer, asked the 23-year-old local maid to get him a glass of water, a district court heard.
He subsequently told her he was going for a short break, The Straits Times said. The maid saw him opening the refrigerator in the kitchen.
When she turned around to go back into the living room, Kanagaraj grabbed her from behind, placed his left hand on her abdomen and his right hand on her breast.
The victim managed to struggle free, and Kanagaraj fled.
The worker asked the judge Thursday for a light fine and forgiveness, the report said.
District Judge Kow Keng Siong told him the normal penalty was nine months in jail and a caning, but since Kanagaraj had pleaded guilty he would receive a shorter sentence.