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SINGAPORE: A man who downloaded over 750 child pornography videos over a period of about four years was sentenced to 21 months’ jail.
On Friday (Aug 16), Liew Yih Fui, 31, pleaded guilty to one charge of being in possession of child abuse material.
One of these videos involved a child and an animal, said the prosecution.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Sheldon Lim said sometime in 2017 or 2018, Liew, who was a casino dealer at the time of his offence, was watching pornography when he came across a link to a website with videos of child abuse material.
“The accused developed a fondness for watching children engaging in sexual activities. He then started to specifically search for child abuse material online, and would download the videos that he liked so he could watch them again later,” said the DPP.
In October 2021, acting on a tip-off, the police raided Liew’s home in Tanjong Katong and arrested him.
A total of 752 videos containing child abuse material were found in two of his hard drives, his laptop and two phones.
Seeking between 21 and 25 months’ jail, the prosecutor said the videos found in Liew’s possession were exceptionally depraved.
"These videos featured a total of 13 extremely young children engaging in various sexual acts.
"The faces of all 13 children could be clearly seen," said DPP Lim in his submissions.
In mitigation, Liew’s defence lawyer, Michael Chia, said the films were only for his client’s consumption, adding: “He stumbled upon the links and downloaded them because they happened to be free.”
Chia noted that there was no evidence of Liew disseminating the materials, and that he had cooperated with authorities in their investigations and did not try to cover his tracks.
In sentencing, Principal District Judge Toh Yung Cheong said: “In respect of the harm caused, the court has to consider the harm to the children, as well as the wider harm caused by the accused’s actions in creating demand for such material.”
Addressing Liew, the judge said: “As for the claim that you have not watched all the material yet, this does not itself reduce the harm caused.”
He added that the predominant sentencing consideration for such an offence is deterrence, and that the law needs to deter both the possession and the production of the material.
Those convicted of possessing child abuse material can be jailed for up to five years, and can be liable to a fine or to caning. - The Straits Times/ANN
