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S'porean man, 57, gets max fine of S$2,000 for urinating at Potong Pasir MRT station
This case was just one of several that happened in January 2025.
February 26, 2025, 06:49 PM
A Singaporean man caught urinating at Potong Pasir MRT station earlier this year was fined S$2,000 by the State Courts on Feb. 26.
Zhou Hongwei, 57, pleaded guilty to one charge of causing public nuisance and was given the maximum fine, according to CNA.
Personally apologised to station staff
On Jan. 13, Zhou had consumed alcohol before boarding a train from Chinatown MRT station towards Punggol MRT station that evening.
Feeling the urge to urinate while on the train, Zhou alighted at Potong Pasir MRT station and went to the passenger service centre.
He then unzipped his pants and urinated.
A station manager who spotted him informed the operations control centre and the police, and Zhou was arrested and charged.
Zhou's lawyer Gan Teng Wei said his client was ashamed and embarrassed, and had personally gone to the station to apologise to the staff for his actions.
Adding that Zhou was aware that excessive consumption of alcohol had led to the incident, Gan said Zhou has since joined an alcohol addiction programme.
Those charged with public nuisance can be jailed for up to three months, fined up to S$2,000, or both.
Both the prosecution and Gan sought a fine.
One of several urination cases this year
Zhou's case was just one of several that happened in January 2025.
On Jan. 10, 41-year-old Chinese national Li Guorui was caught on video relieving himself on the handrail of an escalator at Outram Park MRT station.
On Jan. 13, video footage of another man, Soo Fook Khan, peeing on a wall at Tanah Merah MRT station, was uploaded on social media, though it was unclear when this incident occurred.
Soo's case is still before the courts.
An average of 600 tickets a year were issued for public urination or defecation in the past five years.
According to the National Environment Agency (NEA), the highest number of enforcement actions against public urination or defecation occurred in 2023, with about 1,300 tickets issued.
In response to Mothership's queries, NEA attributed this high number to increased feedback received at cleanliness hotspots.
As such, more officers were deployed during that period.
Top image via Wikipedia
