S'pore man, 20, caught taking upskirt pics at Paya Lebar MRT station, pushed & injured victim while fleeing

After noticing a dress-clad woman was standing in front of him on an upward moving escalator at Paya Lebar MRT station in September 2024, a 20-year-old Singaporean man took out his phone to take upskirt photos of her.

However, while taking the photos, the man, Benjamin Kow, accidentally hit the woman's calf with his phone, prompting her to turn around and ask to look through Kow's phone, reported Shin Min Daily News.

After the woman found out that Kow had indeed taken an upskirt video and several upskirt photos of her, she alerted the police on the spot.

In response, Kow grabbed his phone and attempted to flee the scene, during which he pushed the woman and caused her to fall.

Kow's escape attempt was eventually foiled by another man who witnessed the incident, and Kow was arrested within hours of committing his offence.

On Apr. 7, Kow pleaded guilty to three counts of voyeurism.

He will be sentenced on Jun. 16.

Caught red-handed

According to Shin Min, Kow committed his offence at an escalator leading to Exit D of Paya Lebar MRT station at around 11:43pm on Sep. 24, 2024.

At the time, the victim, a 29-year-old South Korean national, was standing in front of him.

After her leg was hit by Kow's phone, the victim turned around and became suspicious that Kow had taken photos of her without her consent, as he was seen holding his phone.

She told Kow that she would like to check his phone, to which Kow complied and handed over his device.

Tried to delete evidence before police arrival

The victim's suspicions were confirmed after she found an upskirt video and a series of blurry upskirt photos of her taken in quick succession with Kow's phone, reported Shin Min.

However, just as she was notifying the police about his deeds, Kow suddenly grabbed his phone from her and attempted to flee.

During his escape attempt, Kow pushed the victim, causing her to fall and sustain injuries on her elbow and ankle.

After the victim cried for help, a male witness hopped on a bicycle, chased after Kow, and managed to stop him.

While waiting for police to arrive, Kow also tried to destroy the evidence by deleting the upskirt video.

He was eventually arrested at 1:05am on Sep. 25, 2024, approximately an hour after committing his offence.

Not the first time taking upskirt photos

Investigations into Kow revealed that the 29-year-old victim was not the first woman Kow had taken upskirt photos of, reported Shin Min.

He had used the same method to take upskirt photos of another two unknown women on an escalator at Dakota MRT station on Jan. 29 and May 23, 2024.

However, Kow's offences went under the radar at the time because the women were not aware they had been victimised and did not lodge a police report.

Top images via Shin Min Daily News & Canva; photo for illustration purposes only