French teen faces possible prison sentence for Singapore straw-licking video
Key takeaways
- A French 18-year-old is facing mischief and public nuisance charges in Singapore after he posted a video to social media of him licking a straw from a vending machine and putting it back.
- By: FRANCE 24 French teenager Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien arrives for an application for the court's permission to leave Singapore, at the country's State Courts on April 29, 2026.
- Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 18, was charged April 24 and hasn’t entered a plea, said the city-state’s largest English-language newspaper, The Straits Times.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
A French 18-year-old is facing mischief and public nuisance charges in Singapore after he posted a video to social media of him licking a straw from a vending machine and putting it back. The teen, who has not entered a plea, was charged after the company operating the juice machine filed a police report.
By: FRANCE 24 French teenager Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien arrives for an application for the court's permission to leave Singapore, at the country's State Courts on April 29, 2026. © Roslan Rahman, AFP A French teen is facing mischief and public nuisance charges in Singapore after posting a video on social media of himself licking a straw from an orange juice vending machine and then putting it back.
Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 18, was charged April 24 and hasn’t entered a plea, said the city-state’s largest English-language newspaper, The Straits Times. He allegedly committed the offense at a shopping mall on March 12, and his video spread rapidly when it surfaced, the report said.