SINGAPORE: An instructor of a co-curricular activity (CCA) involving a uniformed group got into a “romantic relationship” with a 15-year-old student.
Another student who learnt of the inappropriate relationship reported it to the school’s teacher in charge of the uniformed group, leading to a police report.
The 33-year-old Singaporean man was sentenced to two-and-a-half years’ jail on Thursday (Jul 31).
He pleaded guilty to three charges of sexual penetration of a minor, with another eight charges taken into consideration.
The offender cannot be named due to a gag order protecting the identity of the victim.
WHAT HAPPENED
The court heard that the man was a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) officer at the time of the offences.
He was posted to be a field instructor at the National Civil Defence Cadet Corps (NCDCC), a national uniformed group for youth in Singapore.
He got to know the victim, a Secondary 4 student, when he was her instructor for the NCDCC’s National Day Parade marching contingent in June 2023.
The victim “developed a crush” on him and would find chances to interact with him, the prosecution said.
For instance, she would take photos with him at rehearsals, send him messages on his personal social media account and wait at train stations that were on his route home.
She confessed her feelings to the man multiple times, describing him as a “role model” and “motivator” whom she looked up to.
The man was aware of the girl’s infatuation with him. Initially, he rejected her flirtatious messages and attempts to ask him out, said the prosecutor.
PROGRESSION OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP
In early August 2023, the pair began exchanging personal messages on social media. By September, they were texting every day. They began talking about sex by the following month.
In November 2023, they went out on “a date” for the first time, the prosecutor said. They held hands, and the girl told the instructor that she loved him.
Later that month, she confided in him, saying she had been sexually assaulted by a relative.
The man developed feelings for the girl between August and December 2023, and the girl was aware of this.
On 10 occasions from Dec 20, 2023, to Apr 5, 2024, the pair engaged in sexual activities, many of them unprotected. In one instance during the school holidays, the man invited the girl to his house, knowing that his wife would be at work.
They created a new Instagram account in January 2024 for the specific purpose of corresponding with each other, using the function where messages disappear.
The girl later told her close friends about the relationship. They had exchanged sexually explicit photos, videos and messages of themselves, some of which the girl’s friends saw.
They felt that the relationship was inappropriate, given the man’s role, his age and married status.
VICTIM’S FRIEND REPORTS IT
On Apr 5, 2024, one of the girl’s friends learnt from her that the man was driving her to school.
The friend decided to approach the teacher in charge, who made a police report on Apr 8, 2024.
During investigations, the man initially denied being in a romantic or sexual relationship with the victim. However, he later confessed and assisted with investigations.
In May 2024, he breached the conditions of his bail by contacting the victim. Concerned that the victim may engage in self-harm, the man texted her again for a day.
He later reported this, admitting to the investigation officer that he had contacted the victim.
The prosecution sought 30 to 36 months’ jail for the offender, saying that their relationship was that of trainer and cadet in the NCDCC.
The victim looked up to him and had confided in him, while the man was “a mature adult in his 30s who was married”, said the prosecutors.
“He ought to have distanced himself from the victim. Instead, he reciprocated the victim’s romantic advances and eventually began a romantic – then sexual – relationship with the victim,” said the prosecution.
However, they added that the man did not abuse his position to obtain sex acts nor coerce or pressure her. The victim was also close to 16 years old, had initiated the relationship and “was not particularly vulnerable”.
In sentencing, the judge accepted that the man had initially rejected the victim’s advances.
However, as the minor’s CCA instructor, he was in a position of trust to guide and lead her, she said.
CNA has contacted SCDF and the Ministry of Education for more information.
