Advertisement

Retiree jailed eight years for performing oral sex on boy in Tampines

(Photo: Getty images)
(Photo: Getty images)

A Singaporean retiree who was tried for performing oral sex on a 12-year-old boy has been found guilty and sentenced to eight years’ jail after a four-day trial.

Chua Hock Leong, 63, was on Friday (21 July) convicted of one charge of committing sexual assault on the boy, who cannot be named due to a gag order, on 27 January last year in a toilet at Tampines Eco Green Park. In sentencing, Justice Choo Han Teck did not impose caning on Chua due to his age.

The victim, a secondary one student, said in his victim impact statement that he was so traumatised by the incident that he has become fearful of old men. The boy said that he had just gone to the park to explore as he had never been there before.

Said the boy, “I used to friendly with people. I have no problem greeting them with ‘Hi’ and talking to them. After what happened, I no longer do that. I am also afraid of older men especially Chinese older men. I felt sad because I enjoy talking to people but I cannot do it anymore.”

He added that he no longer goes out alone for fear of meeting older men and stays at home most of the time. “I was traumatised by what happened to me… I thought older people would take care of younger people,” he said.

The boy added that he was “ashamed” by what had happened to him and couldn’t tell his friends about it. He accompanies his friends to the park when they want to go there even though he doesn’t want to.

On the day of the incident, the boy was relieving himself inside the toilet cubicle in the park when Chua, who is married with grown-up children, barged in and performed oral sex on him. After a minute, the boy pushed Chua away and ran off. His mother later reported the incident to the police.

Chua’s DNA was found on the boy’s boxer shorts and the door handle of the toilet. Two palm prints lifted from the door handle also matched Chua’s left palm.

In mitigation, Chua’s lawyer Vijay Kumar said that the offence was his client’s “first brush with the law” and a “one-off and foolish incident”. There was also no physical, mental or psychological injury caused to the boy, whom the defence lawyer described as “street-smart” and “clever”. Vijay added that it was the boy who first said “Hi” to Chua, which led to a chain of events.

Chua, who worked as a technician with SIA Engineering for over 38 years, is also looking after an 84-year-old mother who is suffering from kidney failure and is “not expected to live very much longer”, said Vijay.

“He will now be unable to take care of his mother and most likely will not be able to see her again,” said the lawyer. He added that the incident had caused “a lot of shame and embarrassment to Chua’s family, which has caused him a lot of pain”.

Chua could have been jailed for between eight and 20 years. Offenders who are below 50 years old and commit sexual assault on victims below 14 years of age also face at least 12 strokes of the cane.