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Member of Catholic order charged over sex acts with boys in mid-2000s

Young boy bending down and covering his head with his hands
Young boy bending down and covering his head with his hands

SINGAPORE — A member of a religious order was charged on Thursday (20 January) for sexual acts with several teenage boys between 2005 and 2007.

The man in his 60s was handed two counts of having carnal intercourse against the order of nature and two counts of committing an indecent act with the boys.

The boys were aged between 14 and 16 at the time of the alleged offences, which were committed at a location near the boys’ school, the court heard on Thursday.

The names of the school, alleged victims and the accused, as well as his occupation, cannot be reported due to a gag order imposed by the court.

The prosecution applied to have the man remanded to assess if he was suffering from any abnormality of mind that might have impaired his mental responsibility.

The man's lawyer Edmond Pereira, initially objected, saying his client was not ready emotionally to be remanded. However, his client later agreed to be remanded.

Pereira added that the Singaporean man returned to the city-state from overseas two years ago to address the matter. He had resided overseas for 12 years.

The man was not a flight risk and had been cooperating fully with the police, Pereira stated.

The man will be remanded at the Complex Medical Centre (CMC) in Changi Prison for psychiatric observation and will return to court on 10 February.

If convicted of voluntarily having carnal intercourse against the order of nature, the man faces a jail term of up to 10 years, and a fine.

If convicted of committing an indecent act with any child, he may be jailed up to two years, and/or fined up to $5,000 on a first conviction.

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