Teacher asked student Pr 6 to be his girlfriend, she wanted to be his second wife and lost her virginity at the age of 15

Shaffiq Alchatib
The Street Times
November 22, 2024

A married teacher who groomed a girl he met in elementary school and sexually penetrated her when she was an underage high school student was sentenced Nov. 22 to 14 years and two months in prison.

The man, who was her Malay teacher, asked her to be his girlfriend when she was in sixth grade in 2006, prosecutors said.

Their relationship continued when she entered high school, and he began performing sex acts on her in 2007, when she was about thirteen.

In earlier proceedings, deputy public prosecutors Santhra Aiyyasamy and Janessa Phua told the court that the man, now 51, kissed the girl’s lips that year and groped her genitals over her clothes a year later.

In 2009, he made her perform a sex act on him, among other things, before sexually penetrating her the following year, shortly before her 16th birthday, the DPP added.

After a trial, he was convicted of six counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and two counts of sexual penetration of a minor.

In a statement in October, the Ministry of Education said he has been suspended since July 2017 and no longer teaches at any school.

Details about the man, who was first taken to court in 2021, and the victim cannot be made public due to a gag order to protect her identity.

In their comments, the DPPs previously said: “The suspects exploited the power asymmetry between them and sexually groomed the victim… after establishing a relationship with the victim and gaining her trust.”

She had the “intention to marry the suspect as his second wife, even though the suspect had informed her that he was not willing to divorce his wife.”

During the trial, the victim testified that he started talking to her via MSN Messenger in 2006, when he was her Malay teacher.

They were in a library when he wrote his cell phone number on a piece of paper and gave it to her.

On September 6, 2006, they were in a computer lab when he showed her a piece of paper with the words “Aku cinta padamu”, which means “I love you” in Malay, on it.

Court documents said he then asked her to be his girlfriend, and they became a couple that year.

She testified that they were in a car in 2007 when he kissed her lips.

The DPPs said: “She explained that she remembered this incident vividly because she felt like gagging and because it was the first time she had been kissed.”

She also testified that when she was a sophomore in high school in 2008, he would occasionally pick her up after her co-curricular activities.

Prosecutors added: “The victim gave a compelling account of how the suspect’s sexual exploitation of her escalated in severity.

“In addition to kissing the victim, the suspect started touching her (intimate parts) over her clothes, and then (performed a sexual act) in front of her.”

According to the victim, she visited his apartment in 2008.

The DPPs told the court: “She recalled that the suspect had reprimanded her for greeting him too loudly when she entered his flat because he was concerned that his neighbors would be aware of her presence.

“It was her testimony that she had to wear a sweater to cover her school uniform as directed by the suspect.”

Prosecutors said he would perform sex acts on her at his home, adding: “She recalled a particular incident when he did so because the suspect’s two young daughters were banging on the door looking for their father. ”

The court heard the man’s misconduct escalated over the years and the girl lost her virginity when he sexually penetrated her when she was 15 in November 2010.

The facts came to light in May 2017 when the victim’s sister came across a recording of the girl talking about the loss of her virginity.

The sister and their father reported the incident to the police shortly afterwards.

The DPPs said: “The victim had no intention of reporting the matter to the police. The victim explained that if she had informed anyone about her relationship with the suspect, she feared the suspect would lose his job.

“She was embarrassed to share the relationship with her friends because of their age difference… In addition to her concern for the suspect, the victim was too afraid to leave the suspect or report his inappropriate behavior.”

The man, who is represented by lawyers Steven John Lam and Kenrick Lam, denied committing the offenses in all eight charges.

According to him, the sexual relationship between them only began after she turned 16, the legal age of consent in Singapore. He also claimed that she had a motive to falsely implicate him because he refused to divorce his wife and marry her.

On November 22, the court heard that he plans to appeal his conviction and sentence. His bail has been set at $80,000.