A HIGH COURT judge has ordered a businessman and educator to be paid $740,000 by two medical professionals in a ruling on a defamation lawsuit that highlights the dangers of posting unverified claims online.

“These are soul-damning allegations that touch the essence of the ethics and morality of the human being. They are some of the worst things that could be said about man or woman,” Justice Ricky Rahim said of the allegations as he awarded damages to teacher and businessman Colin Chin-Aleong.

Chin-Aleong, who has operated a well-known tutoring business for over three decades in Westmoorings, filed the lawsuit following a series of online posts made between October 4 and 7, 2021.