SINGAPORE: A man was at home in March 2023 when his neighbour, a 12-year-old boy, offered to perform a sexual act on him.
The man, who accepted the offer, was caught five months later when the child told a schoolmate about the incident.
Their school counsellor was informed and subsequently alerted the police.
On Oct 8, the 52-year-old man was sentenced to eight years and three months’ jail after he pleaded guilty to one count of statutory rape.
He cannot be named owing to a gag order to protect the child’s identity.
Deputy public prosecutors Sunil Nair and June Ngian stated in court documents that the man was well acquainted with the boy’s family as they visited his home on festive occasions.
The boy had returned home from school on March 7, 2023, but could not enter his flat as he did not have his keys.
Needing to use the bathroom, he went to the offender’s home on the same corridor and knocked on the door.
The man allowed him in, and the pair later sat on opposing couches in the unit while waiting for the boy’s father to return home.
Around 5pm, the boy asked to touch the man’s private parts and offered to perform a sexual act on him.
The pair then engaged in sexual activities before the boy’s brother turned up to take the child home later that evening.
The DPPs said that the offender knew the boy was around 12 years old at the time of the incident. - The Straits Times/ANN
