A Malaysian man took a woman to the foot of his block to discuss job opportunities, then invited her upstairs. When she declined, he stopped her from leaving and forcibly dragged her into a lift. She managed to break free and escape just before the lift doors closed.
The accused, Malaysian national Wang Qingxiang, 24, whose name is transliterated from Chinese, was sentenced to two weeks’ jail on Thursday (29 October) after pleading guilty to one charge of attempted wrongful confinement.
According to the facts of the case, Wang met the woman near Ubi MRT Station on the evening of 21 September this year, saying he would introduce her to job opportunities.
The pair walked and chatted, eventually arriving at the foot of the HDB block where Wang lived.
At about 11.25pm, Wang invited the woman to his home to continue discussing job opportunities, but she declined. When she tried to leave, he grabbed her arm and body to stop her. She screamed for help.
When the doors of a nearby lift opened, Wang forcibly dragged her inside. He held on to her to prevent her from escaping while pressing the door-close button, trying to shut the lift doors.
The woman managed to break free just in time, escaping from the lift before the doors closed and running away. The entire incident lasted about 30 seconds.
The woman reported the incident to the police and said she had panicked afterwards. She said Wang’s actions frightened her and she feared he was trying to rape her.
Wang was arrested on 22 September and had been remanded in custody since then.
The prosecution said the woman’s escape was purely a matter of luck. Had she not escaped in time, she could have been trapped alone with Wang in the small, enclosed lift.
