French student fined in Singapore for straw licking prank
A French student, Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, was fined 600 Singapore dollars for licking a straw and placing it back in a vending machine, filming the stunt for social media.
A 19-year-old French student, Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, who studies at Singapore's ESSEC Business School, pleaded guilty to a public nuisance charge. In March, he removed a straw from a fresh orange juice vending machine, licked it, and put it back into the dispenser. He filmed the prank for an Instagram story, and the video later went viral.
An employee of the company operating the machine spotted the footage and contacted police. As a result, all 500 straws in the dispenser had to be replaced. The direct cost was only 5 Singapore dollars (around €3.30), but the case attracted nationwide attention.
Maximilien could have faced several months in prison, a fine, or both. His lawyer told the court that he was remorseful and now understood that an apparently harmless prank could have far-reaching consequences. It remains unclear whether authorities will revoke his student pass.
Singapore is known for its strict laws and rigorous enforcement. For example, the import of chewing gum remains largely prohibited to prevent littering and vandalism. The city-state also retains judicial caning for certain serious offenses, although that punishment was not applicable in Maximilien's case.
