Online personality Tay Foo Wei, better known as Kurt Tay, was sentenced to 14 months and 10 days in prison after pleading guilty to charges involving the non-consensual distribution of intimate images and threatening communication.
The 43-year-old admitted to sending explicit images and a video of a woman to a Telegram group chat without her consent. The group had about 247 members, and he posted the video 30 times and the image 13 times, ensuring that those in the chat would see the material, as per CNA report.
The victim was identifiable in the content, with most of her face visible, according to the reports.
He was also convicted under the Protection from Harassment Act for sending threatening messages in the same chat. These included messages such as asking about hiring a killer and expressing a desire for the victim to die.
Friends of the victim who were in the group identified her as the target and alerted her, prompting her to file a police report.
A gag order was imposed to protect the victim’s identity.
Tay first contacted the woman after coming across her content on Twitter, now known as X, where she advertised sexual services. Their interactions escalated into exchanges of explicit material and online communication.
During their interactions, the victim allegedly instructed Tay to perform and record degrading acts. At some point, Tay told the victim that one of his own videos had been leaked. The victim denied leaking it, claimed she had lost her phone and threatened to send Tay’s videos to his wife.
Tay had earlier said his wife was depressed and would be upset if she found out about his interactions.
On Sep. 5, 2023, Tay received an intimate video and image of the victim engaging in a sexual act with a man. The victim was identifiable in both. When Tay later asked her about the material, she dismissed it as a joke.
On Sep. 7, Tay asked to meet the victim in person, but the two got into a disagreement. The victim allegedly threatened to cause Tay to lose his job. Tay later claimed that compromising videos and photos of him had been sent to his wife and shared in a group chat.
On Oct. 18, 2023, Tay posted threatening messages in a Telegram group chat with hundreds of members, including asking about the cost of hiring a killer. Members of the chat who knew the victim alerted her, and she lodged a police report after feeling alarmed.
On Oct. 27, Tay escalated the situation by sending the victim’s intimate video and image multiple times in the same group chat, stating that it was “an eye for an eye”.
The prosecution highlighted that the content could easily be forwarded by any member, increasing the risk of wider distribution beyond the group.
About 10 people later informed the victim that her intimate content had been shared. She was alarmed, distressed and humiliated, and considered seeking psychiatric help.
Tay was first charged in court on Nov. 1, 2023, and returned on Nov. 16, where he was heckled on both occasions. During the Apr. 22 sentencing hearing, members of the public filled several rows in the courtroom, with some heard discussing and deriding him.
Tay was represented by a public defender and was seen sitting quietly, reviewing court documents on a tablet.
The prosecution argued that Tay’s actions caused a high degree of harm. They pointed out that the victim was identifiable, the material was repeatedly shared, and it was left in the chat for a period of time without being deleted.
They said his actions showed malice and were motivated by revenge, with the intention of maximising the victim’s humiliation.
A jail term of at least 16 months and a fine of S$4,000 were sought.
The defence argued for a lighter sentence of 10 months. They noted that the video was about six seconds long and of low resolution, and that the relationship between Tay and the victim was complex. The defence also argued that the victim had threatened Tay and circulated his material, and that her behaviour suggested a lower degree of alarm. They contended that Tay acted out of anger and frustration rather than calculated malice, and highlighted that this was his first offence, that he had pleaded guilty and expressed remorse, and that he had quit his job, affecting his family financially.
District Judge Lee Lit Cheng found that Tay acted with malice and that there was clear potential for the intimate material to be distributed beyond the Telegram group. The judge noted that the victim experienced alarm due to being identifiable in the content and that the repeated postings increased the harm caused.
Tay was sentenced to 14 months’ imprisonment for the non-consensual distribution of intimate images and fined S$3,000 for the harassment offence. As he was unable to pay the fine, he will serve an additional 10 days in prison.
Nine other charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.
Under Singapore law, distributing or threatening to distribute intimate images without consent carries penalties of up to five years’ imprisonment, a fine, caning, or a combination of such punishments.
Tay first gained public attention after auditioning for Singapore Idol in 2006. He later became known for controversial online behaviour, including public stunts and appearances that drew media attention.
This case marks his first criminal conviction.
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