Man in Singapore jailed 7 months for engaging in sexual act with 14-year-old girl
A 29-year-old man has been sentenced to seven months’ jail for engaging in a sexual act with a 14-year-old girl.
On Tuesday (24 June), Terrance Teo Jian Xiang pleaded guilty to one charge of sex with a minor below the age of 16 in a case involving multiple men and the same victim.
The incident occurred over several days in early July 2024.
Two other men, 24-year-old Goh Shao Heng and 28-year-old Yong Eak Chung, who were allegedly involved with the same girl, are scheduled to plead guilty in July.
Teen acquaintances advertised girl’s sexual services on Telegram
Court documents revealed that the meeting between Teo and the girl was arranged by two 16-year-old male acquaintances of the victim, referred to as A1 and A2 due to a gag order protecting their identities.
A1 had met the victim on Instagram and was friends with A2.
On 4 July 2024, after attending school, the victim, who was living in a girls’ home at the time, did not return to her residence but instead met A1 and told him she needed a place to stay.
A1 said he could help her find a place to stay, but in return, she would need to provide sexual services to men.
Feeling she had no other option, the victim agreed.
She was then introduced to A2, who advertised her sexual services in a Telegram chat group named “Watermelon”.
Source: Shortpedia, for illustration purposes only
Man paid S$200 for sexual service
The following day, Teo posted in the Telegram chat group indicating that he was looking for a sexual service.
Later that day, A1 and A2 arranged for him to obtain one for S$200.
Following their instructions, Teo went to the staircase landing of an HDB block in Punggol that evening. The victim arrived shortly after.
“The victim asked [Teo] if he was sent by ‘the boss’, and [Teo] replied yes,” said Deputy Public Prosecutor Melissa Heng.
Teo then told the victim what he wanted, scanned a QR code, and transferred S$200 to an account under A2’s name via PayNow.
Ms Heng added that Teo did not ask for the victim’s name or age, and did not verify her identity using an NRIC or other form of identification.
Sexual act lasted 2 minutes, man later claimed service was ‘not provided in full’
During the encounter, the victim set a two-minute timer and performed a sexual act on Teo until the alarm went off.
She then told him she had to leave and departed.
Teo later messaged A1 and A2 to ask why the sexual act had only lasted two minutes. In a review, he claimed that the service had not been fully provided.
The Telegram chat group was later deleted.
Teo was arrested on 24 Aug 2024. Court documents did not disclose how he was identified or how the offence came to light.
In his defence, Teo’s lawyer Zheng Yirong argued that he genuinely believed the victim was of legal age and that “her behaviour supported that belief”.
According to his lawyer, he would not have engaged in the sexual activity had he realised she was a minor.
Ms Zheng also noted that the encounter was a one-off transaction arranged by a stranger, and emphasised that Teo did not groom the victim or pressure her into the act.
Under Singapore law, the offence of sexual exploitation involving a minor carries a penalty of up to 10 years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both.
Man in S’pore sexually assaults 13-year-old stepdaughter on multiple occasions, gets 9 years’ jail
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