The Uninvited: Security guard entered Toa Payoh flat and took 'tour' while owner was asleep

While you were sleeping in the dead of the night, a security guard 'invited' himself into a flat in Toa Payoh and took a tour of its various rooms.

The 32-year-old accused, known as Raj, pleaded guilty after being charged in court and was sentenced on Wednesday afternoon (Oct 3) to 18 months of probation.

The incident occurred at Block 205 Toa Payoh North on June 23, 2017, at around 4.15am.

According to Lianhe Wanbao, he had gone up to the 12th storey, claiming that he wanted to "admire the scenery", but ended up wandering outside a unit.

At about 4.27am, Raj took out his handphone and started taking photos of the said unit.

He then reached his hand through the window to unlock the unit's main door and entered the flat. Raj walked to the bedroom and tried opening the door, but found it locked.

Turning on the flashlight on his mobile phone, he went to the kitchen and toilet, before returning to the living room.

He subsequently left the unit -- and even remembered to close the main door.

The flat owner, a 43-year-old Chinese man, had been sleeping in his room when the incident took place and was therefore unaware of what had happened.

He only learnt of the 'uninvited guest' four days later on June 27 upon checking CCTV footage, and immediately went to the police station to lodge a report.

During his sentencing, the chief prosecutor said that this was not Raj's first offence.

In 2016, Raj was fined $3,000 for trespassing into someone else's house. Even though he did not steal anything, he had still committed a crime.

The defendant had also reportedly claimed not to remember anything when being cross-examined, only to confess afterwards. Because of his dishonesty, he should have been sentenced to three months in jail, said the prosecutor.

Raj's defence lawyer pointed out that no normal person would enter someone's home in wee hours of the night for no reason, and asked that the judge sentence his client to psychotherapy and probation instead.