Shopowner Who Repeatedly Didn’t Wear Mask During FB Livestream Fined $3,000

Even though the COVID-19 restrictions have been greatly relaxed for the past few months, it’s definitely no reason for anyone to stop adhering to the current COVID-19 restrictions, such as wearing your mask indoors.

Unless you want to get caught lah.

And it seems like a boutique owner who frequently holds live streams on Facebook learned that the hard way.

Just yesterday (2 June), a boutique owner was finer $3,000 after not wearing a mask during multiple live streams that were conducted in her shop.

Niki Han Jiayi, the owner of fashion store Nimisski at Far East Plaza, was caught not wearing a mask during the live streams held at Nimisski on 21 occasions between 20 September 2020 and 21 October 2020.

The 34-year-old pleaded guilty to three counts of failing to wear a mask when outside her home, with 18 other similar charges considered during sentencing.

Authorities Alerted Through Information Report

According to court documents, an information report regarding Han’s mask-wearing offences was submitted to the Singapore Tourism Board (STB). Court documents did not identify the individual who filed the report.

Thereafter, STB began to screen various Facebook Live videos that Han’s shop posted. These live streams were primarily held to promote the store’s products.

Authorities then noticed that there was evidence of Han talking to customers without wearing a mask in the background of three clips.

She also modelled a dress and promoted it by talking into the camera without wearing a mask on one occasion.

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Apart from her most recent charge, Han was also charged back in 2018 for possessing counterfeit goods.

The prosecution asked for a fine, while Han’s defence lawyer brought up Han’s medical condition.

Han’s lawyer claimed that Han has sinusitis which resulted in her having a dry throat and runny nose during the live streams, hence prompting her to take her mask off.

However, her lawyer also noted that she was not supposed to do so, and that she should not have interacted with customers while not wearing a mask as well.

For each count of failing to wear a mask when not in her ordinary place of residence without a reasonable excuse, Han could have been jailed for a maximum of six months, issued a maximum fine of $10,000 or both.

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Featured Image: Facebook (Nimisski)