SINGAPORE – A young man was ordered on July 11 to undergo probation for a year and six months after he was caught performing a lewd act on his neighbour’s cat, which did not suffer any injuries.

As part of his sentence, the offender, who is now 20, must remain indoors from 10pm to 6am every day and perform 70 hours of community service.

His mother was bonded for $5,000 to ensure his good behaviour during the probation period.

He must also attend offence-specific intervention to address his sexually offending behaviour.

Unrelated to this case, he also committed other offences, including theft, in 2022 when he was 17 years old.

In consequence, he cannot be named as those below 18 are protected under the Children and Young Persons Act.

In May, the offender pleaded guilty to

one count each of assault, harassment and doing an obscene act in a public place.

Two counts of theft and a second assault charge were considered during his sentencing.

In earlier proceedings, Deputy Public Prosecutor Dillon Kok told the court that a 35-year-old man, who lived in a Senja Road block of flats, owned the cat, which he allowed to roam freely outside his home.

The then 18-year-old offender, who lived in the same block, saw the cat in a public place at around 1.50am on April 8, 2023, and decided to play with it.

Somehow, the animal made him feel sexually aroused, and he performed an obscene act on it before it moved away.

A nearby CCTV camera recorded the incident and a neighbour showed the cat owner the footage soon after.

Feeling annoyed, the owner uploaded the clip onto hi...