Husband of playschool owner sexually abused three sisters aged below 10, gets jail

SINGAPORE: The husband of a woman who ran a playschool sexually abused three sisters enrolled in the centre when they were between six and 10 years old.

For his crimes, the 65-year-old man was sentenced on Tuesday (Mar 3) to two years and two months' jail.

Another eight weeks' jail was imposed in lieu of four strokes of the cane, as the man is above 50 and cannot be caned.

The man and other parties cannot be named in order to protect the identities of the victims.

The court heard that the man was married to a woman who ran a playschool, conducting enrichment programmes for children.

The programmes are designed for children with learning disabilities, although all students are accepted, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Marshall Lim.

Her husband helped out with the centre's operations by conducting some enrichment activities and ferrying the children around in his van.

The three victims, now aged 18, 20 and 23, were below the ages of 10 when they were attacked between 2004 and 2008.

Their mother first enrolled the middle daughter in the centre between 2003 and 2004, as she felt her child had learning difficulties and the proprietor of the playschool was a family friend.

She later enrolled the other two girls in the same playschool, which cannot be named in order to protect the victims' identities.

Sometime between 2004 and 2006, the oldest of the three girls attended an enrichment class at the playschool.

The accused took the girl, who was between eight and 10 at the time, to the second floor of the school, where he lived. He then molested the girl.

He targeted the middle child between 2006 and 2008, also after she attended an enrichment class at the playschool.

After the class ended, he took the girl, who was between seven and nine, to a quiet area near the office.

He then made the girl perform a sex act on him with her hands.

Sometime between 2007 and 2008, the youngest of the three girls attended an enrichment class at the playschool and needed to use the washroom.

The accused took her to a toilet on the second floor. He then performed a sex act on the girl, who was between six and seven at the time.

The offences went undetected for years, until April 2017, when the youngest sister was having tuition classes with her older sister.

The tutor noticed that the middle child looked troubled, and asked her what was troubling her.

The middle child confided in the teacher and her younger sister that she had been molested by the accused when she was younger.

The youngest sister was shocked, as she had similar experiences. She went to the police station a month later and filed a report against the accused, saying he had molested her and her two sisters.

The oldest sister also lodged a police report.

The man pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two counts of molest and one count of an indecent act with a child, with two other charges taken into consideration.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Marshall Lim asked for at least 26 months' jail and an additional 12 weeks' jail in lieu of six strokes of the cane.

He said sexual assault and abuse are "a pernicious evil that must be stamped out", especially when the victims are children.

Defence lawyer Leonard Terence Cheng asked for not more than two years' jail and four strokes of the cane, or eight weeks' jail in lieu of caning.

He said his client was remorseful and sought psychiatric treatment. He has been diagnosed with paedophilic disorder.

The judge said the proposed sentence by the prosecution was a fair one.