Real-life friendships could be just as wholesome as those portrayed in child-friendly sitcoms, but the fact remains that there are some that are more exploitative than heartwarming.
Case in point? The following.
21Y/O Man Jailed 42 Months for Performing Sex Acts on 3 Young Boys Who Were His Friends
According to The Straits Times, a 21-year-old man has been sentenced to 42 months in prison on Monday (28 Jun) for performing sex acts with young boys.
The acts took place between mid-2018 and end-2019, and involved three victims—two of whom were aged 12 at the time and the third was aged 13.
The incidents reportedly transpired at various locations, including staircase landings and public toilets, and took place more than 20 times.
There’s also a fourth victim, though he was reportedly not involved in any sexual behaviour. Instead, he had received an indecent photo from the perpetrator.
According to the news report, the man had become friends with the victims through other mutual friends, and they had bonded over common interests including fishing, e-biking and cycling.
One of the victims, however, later distanced himself from the man.
It’s unknown how the offences came to light.
Sentencing
In court, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Eugene Teh pushed for a sentence of 45 months.
He reiterated the numerous incidents that took place within a relatively short span of time, and stated that they were not isolated in nature.
Meanwhile, Defence Lawyer Marshall Lim requested for a sentence of not more than 39 months.
He brought up the accused’s intelligence level, which was at the borderline range, as well as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and anger management issues.
The man had purportedly been excused from National Service (NS) because of this.
Mr Lim added that the perpetrator had turned himself into a police centre in January 2020, and had accepted responsibility for what he had done.
The accused was eventually sentenced to 42 months in jail, with his sentence backdated to 15 January 2020, when he was first remanded.
He will reportedly receive due care and treatment for his disorder while doing time.
For each offence of sexually penetrating a minor, he could have faced a jail sentence of up to 20 years and a fine and caning.
Past Instances
Unfortunately, this is far from being the first incident of this nature.
On 1 April 2021, 21-year-old Malaysian Clement Tan Jun Yan was sentenced to 18 months in jail on the same day for molesting two underage males.
The young man pleaded guilty to two counts of molestation involving two boys and another two similar charges were considered during his sentencing, reported CNA.
DPP Niranjan Ranjakunalan noted that Tan had admitted about his “sexual interest” towards “young males who are mainly in the secondary school age group”.
The accused told the court that his inability to control his desires arose from his “stress” at work.
According to a medical report by a doctor from the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), Tan had also viewed pornographic material involving young males above 13 years of age.
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