French student fined over straw-licking stunt in Singapore

A 19-year-old French student has been fined $465 (S$600) by a Singapore court after pleading guilty to a public nuisance charge. The incident, which occurred in March, involved the teenager filming himself licking a straw from an orange juice vending machine and returning it to the dispenser. The video was subsequently posted to Instagram with the caption 'city is not safe,' a move that drew widespread criticism online.

According to reports, the stunt prompted the vending machine operator, iJooz, to replace all 500 straws within the machine to ensure public hygiene and safety. The teenager was charged in April after the footage went viral and was picked up by local news outlets, leading to an investigation by authorities.

In Singapore, public nuisance is a serious offense, with penalties that can include a fine of up to S$2,000, a jail term of up to three months, or both. While prosecutors had sought the maximum fine, the court finalized the penalty at $465. The case serves as a reminder of the strict legal consequences for social media stunts that compromise public health or safety in the city-state.