Ralph Wee Sentenced to a Year’s Reformative Training

By
Shawn Ambrose
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The first Dune book has over 600 pages, but it still isn’t as long as Ralph Wee’s charge sheet.

Wee, better known as the Teen Who Did a Backflip in a Rhino Enclosure, pleaded guilty last month to eight different charges of mischief.

This included:

  • Jumping into the rhino enclosure at the Singapore Zoo and doing a backflip for TikTok
  • Killing a frog on the foosball table
  • Smoking weed in his bedroom
  • Damaging an information panel at a bus stop, resulting in S$900 worth of damage, paid by the Land Transport Authority
  • Hitting the side mirror of a Mercedes Benz parked in the area, causing S$2,800 worth of damage paid by the car owner
  • Standing in the middle of the road with a beer bottle

As long as this charge sheet, was, it’s perhaps Wee’s blase attitude toward the law that made things worse.

Some of his offences were committed while he was out on bail, and he’s failed to turn up for both court hearings and compulsory urine tests.

This may explain why the 19-year-old was found to be unsuitable for probation.

Ralph Wee Sentenced to a Year’s Reformative Training

Yesterday (20 Dec), the teen was sentenced to a year of reformative training, a month after being convicted of all eight charges.

Another six charges were considered in sentencing.

As the prosecution noted, Wee had reoffended while out on bail, which showed a “proclivity to crime”.

As a result, the court found him unsuitable for probation, and dealt a harsher punishment.

What is Reformative Training? 

Unlike community-based sentencing which allows offenders to remain in society while serving their sentence, youth offenders undergo their informative training in a Reformative Training Centre (RTC).

It is a more severe form of rehabilitation where the offender is placed in a structured environment (facility) to be rehabilitated.

Their reformative training includes counselling, academic training, and vocational training. They will also be supervised heavily after leaving the centre.

And just like imprisonment, reformative training results in a criminal record.

“Beyond the Control of his Parents”

Another argument put forth by the prosecution regarding his unsuitability for probation was that the 19-year-old was “beyond the control of his parents”.

He refused to abide by the curfew set by his parents, and had even run away at one point after a disagreement with them.

“While the relationship between the accused and his parents has seemingly improved, there are doubts in their ability to adequately supervise him,” the prosecutor said.

She added that Wee has anger issues as well, especially when intoxicated.

In August this year, Wee reportedly had to be admitted to IMH because of a risk he posed to his parents.

It was said that Wee had turned to drugs to cope with negative emotions, and that he was going through a “severe emotional crisis” during the offences after a break-up with his girlfriend, who filmed the rhino incident.

“He is a Good Boy”

Wee’s lawyer initially asked the court to consider probation, or a “level one” reformative training, saying that his client is a “good boy”.

“Your honour, Ralph is not a bad boy. He is a good boy. He’s made mistakes, very bad mistakes, errors in judgement, but essentially we have a young man who is a good boy, he is willing to … change,” he said.

He added that being in remand has helped Wee mature and understand the gravity of his offences, something that Wee attested to himself.

“He’s sorry for everything that’s happened. He asked me to apologise on his behalf… he wants a new start,” the lawyer said.

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Featured Image: Twitter (@Pengkritique); Instagram (thetwainhavemet)

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Shawn Ambrose
Email: [email protected]