Singapore man pleads guilty to torturing pet poodle, after videos of abuse went viral
- Clement Chia Tian Xiang repeatedly beat the dog named Leslie between 2016 and 2017. He and his cousin recorded the abuse
- The videos surfaced online last year, leading to his arrest on four charges under the Animals and Birds Act of cruelly torturing an animal
In several video clips either filmed by himself or his cousin, Clement Chia Tian Xiang was seen repeatedly beating and torturing the poodle, often with its legs or mouth restrained. More than three years later, the clips surfaced online and went viral, leading to his arrest and prosecution in court.
District Judge Lorraine Ho will consider two other charges – including failing to take reasonable steps to ensure the dog was protected from injury or disease, namely a skin lesion and skin and ear infections – for sentencing on October 7.
Chia kept his head bowed as the video clips, taken between October 2016 and November 2017 in his flat, were played in court. They ranged between 25 and 90 seconds in length.
Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Norine Tan told the court that Chia had bought the dog, a male poodle named Leslie, for S$2,000 (US$1,485) in 2016. The canine was about four years old at the time. He gave it away to his former girlfriend in November 2017.
In one of the clips, which was taken by his cousin Chia Yong-Quan, 38, he had bound the dog’s mouth shut with white string before beating it with a closed fist multiple times, holding it down by its neck to prevent it from escaping. It struggled and could be heard whimpering.
Chia Yong-Quan was fined S$4,500 (US$3,300) in July for failing to stop the torture.
