Sexual assault allegations can ruin anyone’s career. However, that is a small price to pay for a lifetime of hurt for the victims.
A Singapore musician who goes by the stage name Kidmeddling has recently issued an apology in response to online claims accusing him of sexual assault.
On Wednesday (11 Aug), Instagram user @mdmlord shared a scathing exposé on the local artist. The post has since been taken down but was re-uploaded by @wakeupsingapore.
Kidmeddling, whose real name is Muhd Shafeeq, has been the subject of sexual misconduct claims by a number of alleged victims.
The incriminating Instagram posts shared various accounts including one that accused the musician of grooming a 16-year-old girl.
According to the alleged victims’ accounts, Shafeeq would often cross boundaries with multiple young women.
On several occasions, they claimed that he would target ladies who were vulnerable after consuming alcohol. He would then use his own intoxicated state to justify his actions.
The accounts also stated that he had tested his victims’ limits and would often ignore their protests while displaying grievous levels of misconduct.
As for the alleged grooming of a minor, the account told of how Shafeeq started his conversations by replying to the 16-year-old girl’s Instagram stories.
After some back and forth, he playfully suggested activities such as drinking or moving in with him. He apparently did all this despite knowing that the girl was underage at that time.
On some occasions, he would send inappropriate messages using the Vanish Mode function on Instagram — a feature that enables messages to disappear after a certain amount of time.
This was apparently done to cover his tracks.
On Thursday (12 Aug), Kidmeddling issued an apology on Instagram via a lengthy post.
In the post, he stated that he was aware of the statements against him and apologised to all the people he had hurt and caused discomfort to.
Perhaps to be accountable for his behaviour, he claimed to have sought professional help in the form of counselling and therapy.
He also mentioned that he is reaching out to the victims in question to offer a personal apology.
Although he knows he is not entitled to an audience with his victims, he pledges to change for the better.
While it may be uncomfortable for victims to share details of such stories, there are safe avenues out there to do so.
The Sexual Assault Care Centre (SACC), for example, is an AWARE branch that deals with cases of sexual assault.
They provide free services to those who have experienced sexual assault, helping them deal with their experiences and providing advice for their next steps.
You can reach out to them by calling 6779 0282 or by emailing them at sacc@aware.org.sg.
Our thoughts are with the victims of the alleged sexual assaults. We hope their wounds will eventually heal with time.
Though it’s encouraging that Shafeeq has sought help, we hope he learns the severity of his actions and will not repeat them in the future.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Instagram and Wake Up, Singapore on Instagram.
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