A week's jail for woman who lied about address to enrol daughter in primary school
Claudia Tan
The Straits Time
sNov 13, 2025
A woman who lied about her home address to enrol her daughter in a primary school via priority admission was handed a one-week jail sentence on Nov 13.
The 42-year-old pleaded guilty to one charge of giving false information to public servants and another charge of giving false information when reporting her change of address on Sept 24.
She cannot be named due to a gag order to protect her daughter's identity. The gag order extends to the name of the school and the personnel involved.
In sentencing, District Judge Sharmila Sripathy-Shanaz said a jail term was warranted, given the woman's calculated actions and selfish motives.
The prosecution had asked for a fine of $13,000.
During the 2023 Primary 1 registration exercise, the woman enrolled her daughter into the school via priority admission based on the distance of their home to the school.
To do so, she provided the address of a Housing Board flat she leased out to six tenants.
In June 2024, the woman e-mailed the school to request a change to her records, and provided her partner's address, which was beyond 2km of the school.
She retracted the request when the school told her that it would violate the 30-month stay requirement for students who enrolled via the priority admission.
When the vice-principal of the school met with the woman to verify her address in August 2024, she told her tenants to shutter the flat's windows from 7am to 11pm.
She also instructed them to lie and say that she and her daughter lived in the unit.
After several futile attempts to verify her address, the school informed the woman they would transfer her daughter out of the school in October 2024.
The school made a police report the following month.
For knowingly giving false information to a public servant, an offender can be jailed for up to two years, fined, or both.
For giving false information when reporting a change of address, an offender can be jailed for up to two years, fined up to $3,000, or both.
