Tourist calls police after strangers unlock toilet cubicle door with coin at Chinatown temple
A tourist from Indonesia was left shaken after a group of women allegedly used a coin to unlock her toilet cubicle door while she was inside.
This happened while she was visiting the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple in Chinatown.
The tourist, who had previously studied in Singapore and wishes to remain anonymous, shared her experience to warn others to stay vigilant even in seemingly private spaces.
She told Stomp she was using the second cubicle in the temple's restroom on Feb 11 at about 4pm when she overheard a group of women chatting.
She noted that the restroom had three cubicles -- one of which was locked by management -- leaving only two available.
As she remained inside due to a stomachache, she overheard the women discussing using a coin to open the door of the locked cubicle.
Moments later, she was shocked when her own cubicle door was suddenly unlocked.
"I was shocked because I thought they knew someone was inside since I made some noises while pulling and tearing the tissue paper," she said.
"I shouted at them, and they quickly ran away"
After exiting the toilet, she followed the women and confronted them while recording a video as seen by Stomp.
When asked why they had tried to open her door, they claimed they had knocked but did not hear a response.
"The thing is, I didn't hear them knocking on my door," said the Stomper.
"I thought they were knocking on the cubicle next to me,"
She added that the women then shifted the blame to one another. Two of them pointed fingers at a woman in a red top as the one who had used the coin.
While she was relieved that she had already put her pants on before the incident, the tourist found the behaviour unsettling.
"I feel uncomfortable with their behaviour… Why would someone want to open other cubicles one by one when they are done using the toilet? It really freaked me out."
She initially approached security, but was disappointed with their response.
"The security just said, 'Oh, just open your door only?'" she recounted.
She later called the police non-emergency hotline.
Stomp understands the other women were no longer at the temple when the police arrived.
When asked what outcome she wanted, the tourist said she simply wanted an apology, as there was little else that could be done since she was not physically harmed.
She is sharing her experience to remind others to stay alert, even when using locked toilet cubicles in public places.
"You never know what other people may do to you, especially when you are overseas," she said.
