Get you up to speed: French teenager charged with public nuisance in Singapore after vending machine stunt
Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien has been charged with mischief and public nuisance in Singapore for licking a straw and putting it back into an orange juice vending machine. A court has allowed him to leave the country for a school trip to the Philippines, with the condition that he remains contactable by an investigating officer.
Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, a French teenager, is facing potential imprisonment of up to two years and fines for mischief and public nuisance in Singapore after an incident involving a straw and a vending machine. According to a spokesperson for Essec Business School, the institution is currently investigating the allegations against him.
Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien is required to remain contactable by an investigating officer while he attends a school trip to the Philippines following the court’s approval. His parents have flown to Singapore in advance of his next court appearance scheduled for May 22.
French teenager facing jail after licking straw and putting it back into dispenser | News World
Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien has been charged with mischief and public nuisance (Picture: AFP)
A French teenager is facing two years in prison and thousands of dollars in fines after a stunt where he licked a straw and put it back into the vending machine.
Captioned: ‘City is not safe’, the clip quickly went viral and was reported, sparking an investigation.
Today, a court allowed him to leave the country for a school trip to the Philippines, but he must be contactable by an investigating officer.
A spokesperson for Maximilien’s school – Essec Business School – said it was aware of the allegations and was investigating.
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Maximilien will go to court on May 22 again (Picture: Snapchat)
In the meantime, Maximilien’s parents have flown to Singapore ahead of his court case on May 22.
Similar food-related hygiene stunts have gone viral in the past, including one instance where a young girl licked a tub of ice cream and put it back into the store freezer.
She was filmed by her unseen boyfriend, who said, ‘You vile!’ as he watched the stunt unfold.
Police in Lufkin, Texas, tracked down the girl, but didn’t release her name because she was under 17.
Law enforcement officials previously said the girl could have faced up to 20 years behind bars if convicted on a felony food tampering charge.
Maximilien was filmed licking a straw from the iJOOZ machine (Picture: AFP)
Food tampering has also been an issue in the UK. In 2023, a factory worker was jailed after ‘maliciously’ contaminating food destined for Nando’s.
Garry Jones, 38, worked for Harvey & Brockless Fine Food Company, based in Evesham, Worcestershire, which supplies restaurants across the country.
He worked as a ‘picker’ on the late shift and was responsible for collecting ingredients for the next day’s cooking – but he was caught on CCTV contaminating food products.
He was seen putting rubber gloves, plastic bags, and metal ring pulls in salad dressing and Nando’s hummus.
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