Former Raffles Junior College student Zhao Ke was slapped with the maximum fine of $15,000 for hacking into the school’s computer system.

Now someone has offered to pay his fine through his lawyer after reading about his case in The Sunday Times.

The Sunday Times reported on Oct. 28 that the Chinese national NUS undergraduate might choose to go to jail to reduce his fine by $5,000.

However, Zhao is unable to personally thank the person who is willing to pay his fine because his identity is anonymous.

“Maybe I will thank him through becoming a better person, and by benefiting the society,” he said. 

Zhao was one of the top students of his A-level cohort, obtaining straight As, two distinctions, and one merit for three S papers for his A levels. 

Curious to find out if any of his schoolmates had better results, he hacked into the computer system of RJC in March this year and was caught. 

He was charged under the Computer Misuse Act on Oct. 23. Zhao, who is on an NUS scholarship pursuing a double degree in economics and engineering, is the second person in Singapore to escape a jail sentence for a computer-related offence. 

In an interview with The Observer, Zhao explained why he hacked. 

He said he was not satisfied with his results, and believed, at that point in time, that knowing his classmates' results would spur him to do better. 

“My results are not really good,” he said. 

“If I’m not top of my cohort, I’ll work harder. I have only two distinctions. I think there are at least ten people with three distinctions.” 

He did not get the chance to see his schoolmates’ results, as he was caught red-handed by the school’s technician. 

He has since regretted his fateful decision that day. 

“I learnt never, never do this stupid thing again. The most important thing is to see if it’s the correct thing to do or not,” he said. 

A NUS Board of Discipline has been convened to decide whether Zhao Ke will be allowed to continue with his studies. 

Tan Ern Ser, associate professor and vice-dean of the Office of Student Affairs, said NUS students who break the law are given the opportunity to continue with their studies. These include students who served time in prison. 

“Our stand is not to be punitive about things, to restore rather than destroy,” Tan said. 

“The general philosophy is we want the best for the student. We try to be as helpful as we can.” 

Ironically, Zhao Ke’s parents and friends only learned of his conviction after reading newspaper reports. 

He was adamant of keeping them in the dark and he intentionally chose an acquaintance when he needed someone to post bail of $8,000. 

“I didn’t want them to worry,” he said. 

His acquaintance backed out and Zhao had to serve time in prison for four days. He was released only when six of his close friends raised enough money to post the bail for him. 

The friends who posted bail declined comment and did not want to be interviewed. 

His parents could not help him, as they only earn $400 a month, Zhao said. 

His father is a retired university professor, and his mother is a teacher in a secondary school. 

“My mother cried when she knew about this,” Zhao said. 

In retrospect, he said, he thinks that prison might have done him more good than harm. 

“I think (going to prison) is a good thing. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have learnt so much from the incident,” he said. 

A lesson he learnt in prison was when he realised not all the inmates were bad, he said. 

He recounted a conversation he had with an illegal immigrant from China who said he came to Singapore in the hope of earning money to pay for his son’s education. 

“His boss didn’t pay him his salary, and he had no one to turn to for help,” Zhao said. 

He said he will join the “Yellow Ribbon Project” in the hope he can help past offenders turn over a new leaf.