A woman was sentenced to one week's jail for lying about her address, which she did in order to give her daughter priority to be enrolled at a certain primary school (A week’s jail for woman who lied about address to enrol daughter in primary school, The Straits Times 13 Nov 2025 10:54 a.m., updated at 11:20 a.m.).
A person may be jailed for up to two years, fined or both for knowingly giving false information to a public servant and may be jailed for up to two years, fined up to $3,000 or both for giving false information when reporting a change of address, according to The Straits Times.
Imprisonment in this case seems harsh: the prosecution had asked for $13,000 fine only.
The district judge said a jail term was warranted, given the woman’s calculated actions and selfish motives.
The woman may not be named because of a gag order to protect the daughter's identity. This is unfortunate: the woman should have been named as it would have been a worse punishment. If it resulted in her daughter's identity being exposed, any repercussions fall squarely on the woman. It will be a significant deterrent for others thinking of doing what the woman did.
In any case, the school transferred out the daughter in October 2024 when she was in primary one, according to the report. Her classmates would be able to narrow down her identity.
Finally, what was the woman thinking when she told the school about a change in her daughter's address that would violate the conditions of, and invalidate, the priority enrolment?
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