‘Badge Lady’ Charged For Walking Around Maskless In ION Orchard For 15 Mins
Mask-wearing is quickly becoming a thing of the past, especially now that measures are relaxed and we can practically leave our houses without one in hand.
However, just a year ago, the mask mandate was strictly in place, especially in indoor spaces.
The most infamous breacher of this rule is Phoon Chiu Yoke, whom many have come to know as the ‘Badge Lady’.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
After her defiance made countless headlines, she is now facing charges for walking around ION Orchard without a mask, as sharp-eyed netizens had captured earlier this year.
Badge Lady charged for walking in ION Orchard maskless for 15 minutes
According to The Straits Times (ST), the court charged Phoon under the Covid-19 (Repenning – Control Order) Regulations 2022.
In Aug this year, she was spotted walking around ION Orchard with her unmistakable red handbag on her shoulder.
Source: @alexzellsim on TikTok
During this sighting, she was reportedly not wearing a mask for 15 minutes while walking around the mall.
The offence occurred on 16 Aug, between 11.48am and 12.03pm.
This was roughly two weeks before the authorities declared mask-wearing indoors to be optional on 29 Aug.
Faces 4 charges in total & possible jail time
In total, Ms Phoon faces four charges following her latest offences. Aside from the incident at ION Orchard, three other charges were handed to her in September, including failure to wear a mask twice and absence from an investigation, reports Channel NewsAsia (CNA).
On the prior occasions in March, Phoon had walked along Mandarin Gallery and near a Victoria’s Secret outlet at Orchard Road without a mask on.
Wearing masks outdoors only became optional on 29 Mar, after she committed these two offences.
The last charge seems to be her no-show on 31 Mar, when a health officer required her to appear at the Singapore Tourism Board as part of an investigation.
For each charge levied against her, Phoon could face a year in jail, fined S$20,000, or both.
Her next court date will be on 14 Oct.
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Featured image adapted from @alexzellsim on TikTok and MS News.
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