43-year-old man jailed for having sex with minor

SINGAPORE: A 43-year-old man was sentenced to three months' jail on Thursday for having sex with a minor.

Chang Liang Chieh Peter Gerald was convicted of having sex with a Vietnamese girl who was on a social visit pass. The girl cannot be identified as she was 16 years old at the time of the offence.

The two had met in May last year at a restaurant in Joo Chiat.

They were not acquainted but Chang approached the girl and introduced himself.

Both of them had dinner together and exchanged telephone numbers.

During their chat, Chang asked the girl if she provided sexual services to which she affirmed.

Chang then asked the girl her age and she told him that she was 19 years old.

At the first meeting, Chang paid her S$100 even though they did not seal the deal as Chang was tired.

On May 25, they bumped into each other in Joo Chiat again.

Chang tried to confirm the girl's age again and she insisted she was 19.

At this encounter, they went to a lodging house and were later caught in the act.

During mitigation, Chang's lawyer said the victim had misrepresented her age to Chang more than once. It was difficult to ascertain the age of the victim, especially when she claimed her passport was with someone else.

Chang's lawyer urged the district judge to give a custodial sentence of not more than four months.

But the prosecution noted that the accused did not pursue the matter of the age further and just took the victim's word.

The prosecution added that the maximum jail term for having sex with a person under the age of 18 is seven years.

Chang could also have been fined or sentenced to both.

In delivering the sentence, the district judge took into consideration that the accused did ask the victim for her age.

He said such behaviour must be discouraged which is why it deserves a custodial term.

Source: CNA