Indian-Singaporean jailed for coughing at colleagues while he was Covid-infected

A 64yearold Singaporean of Indian origin was sentenced to two weeks jail on Monday on pleading guilty to one count of breaching a COVID19 regulation by failing to wear a mask that covered his nose and mouth while outside his home in 2021 Despite knowing that he had just tested positive for COVID19 Tamilselvam Ramaiya deliberately coughed at his colleagues lowering his mask to do so on one occasionAnother two charges were taken into consideration during sentencing according to a Channel News Asia report The court heard that Tamilselvam was working as a cleaner for Leong Hup Singapore at the time After reporting for work at 6 Senoko Way on the morning of Oct 18 2021 he told the assistant logistics manager that he was feeling unwell He was told to take an antigen rapid test ARTA colleague administered the test on Tamilselvam and he tested positive for COVID19 Given the result he was instructed to return home and to tell the assistant logistics manager about the result The assistant logistics manager who learnt of the positive test result from someone else told his other colleagues about itHowever Tamilselvam did not head home immediately Instead he went to the companys logistics office to inform the assistant logistics manager about his COVID19 test result Tamilselvam entered the office with a company driver who did not know about the positive test resultThe first victim a 40yearold logistics supervisor told the driver not to go near Tamilselvam The supervisor also asked Tamilselvam to leave the office and made a gesture mimicking kicking him out Tamilselvam walked to the door but turned back to cough twice into the office with his mask onThe supervisor closed the office door but Tamilselvam opened it He lowered his mask to uncover his nose and mouth and coughed into the office a third time before leaving The act was captured on the closedcircuit television camera in the enclosed airconditioned officeWhile Tamilselvam was leaving he passed by a window with a 56yearold clerk on the other side of the glass in the logistics office He opened the window coughed in her direction with his mask on and said kena COVID kena COVID using the Malay word kena to describe someone on the receiving endThe colleagues who were coughed at were alarmed as they knew Tamilselvam had tested positive for COVID19 The clerk was a dialysis patient who suffered from cardiac and renal issues and she administered an ART on herself after being coughed atNone of them contracted COVID19 from the incident After this Tamilselvam went to a polyclinic where he was given another swab test and a threeday medical certificate He was also told to quarantine himself at home The assistant logistics manager of the company lodged a police report over the incidentDuring investigations Tamilselvam said he had coughed at his colleagues as a joke He said he did not treat his positive result seriously and visited the polyclinic to confirm if he had contracted COVID19 Deputy Public Prosecutor Sruthi Boppana said it was no laughing matter and that Tamilselvam had disobeyed express instructions to leave the premises returning instead to cough deliberately at his colleaguesShe asked for three to four weeks jail saying his actions came at a time when Singapore was experiencing a fresh surge of COVID19 cases that led to the tightening of COVID19 restrictions For flouting a COVID19 regulation he could have been jailed for up to six months fined up to SGD10000 or bothThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever