Illegal brothel discovered in Singapore after Thai woman climbs out window

Police uncovered an illegal brothel in Singapore after someone reported seeing a Thai woman standing on a third-floor ledge of a residential building in Jalan Besar on April 8. On Monday, the woman on the ledge was sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to living off the earnings of the prostitution of another person.

A passerby saw the woman standing on a ledge shouting for help from someone called “David,” who never showed up. Scared she was going to jump, the passerby called the police to the scene.

Upon being rescued, 38 year old Sukphansa Jongdee of Thai nationality told the police that she climbed out onto the ledge after getting stuck in the room thanks to a broken door lock.

Police entered the building to find stashes of lubricants and condoms in six separate rooms. A woman inside told the police that she worked there as a prostitute.

On Monday, Sukphansa plead guilty to a single charge, “living on the earnings of the prostitution of another person” in violation of the Woman’s Charter. The court sentenced her to eight weeks in prison.

Police found that Sukphansa was illegally living in Singapore. She entered the city-state on January 11, 2023, as a tourist. Her permission to stay in Singapore expired on February 10, 2023.

Sukphansa said she met a woman named “Wan” who found her a cleaning job paying S$50 (about 1,300 baht) per day. She said she then lost her passport but never reported it.

Then, Wan introduced Sukphansa to a Thai woman named “One” who offered her a new job. Sukphansa was provided accommodation in the Orchard Road area.

In her new role, Sukphansa was instructed to clean, run errands, obtain daily supplies for prostitutes, handle documents and collect earnings from prostitutes in the ring’s two residential units. She was paid S$100 per day, which was drawn from the earnings syndicate’s prostitutes.

The anonymous prostitute who spoke to the police said that Sukphansa began working there on April 1 this year. The woman said the Thai woman handled the earnings and client records of four prostitutes.

The prostitute said that S$400 of her earnings had been handed over to the Thai woman.

On Monday, a prosecutor said that Sukphansa was “unremorseful” and also “deceptive” after providing the police with false addresses during their investigation.

The Thai woman’s eight-week sentence is light considering the maximum penalty for the charge is seven years and a fine of up to S$100,000.