Trainee teacher jailed for 15 months
He didn't reveal police investigation during recruitment by MOE
By Elena Chong
A TRAINEE teacher was sentenced to 15 months in jail yesterday for having sex with two underage girls he met online a few years ago.
One of the girls that Aaron Kok Chun Cheong, 23, had sex with in 2007 was only 12 at that time. He also had sex with a 15-year-old girl in 2008.
This case comes after that of Jonathan Wong, 23, who was on a teaching scholarship at the University of York in Britain.
Wong was convicted of possessing child pornographic videos on his computer and given a suspended six-month sentence. He was also stripped of his scholarship from the Ministry of Education (MOE).
Kok's offences came to light when the 12-year-old girl was warded at the National University Hospital in July 2008 for stomach pain and vomiting.
She was found to be pregnant, and later told a police officer about her sexual encounters with several men.
Tests of the aborted foetus showed that Kok was not the biological father.
Yesterday, the second-year trainee at the National Institute of Education pleaded guilty to having sex with her in his flat at Bukit Batok.
He also admitted to having sex with a 15-year-old student inside a toilet cubicle for the handicapped at the West Mall shopping centre.
They had made contact in April 2008 through www.habbo.com.sg, an Internet chat website.
Kok came to know the 12-year-old through the same website in late 2006.
In September 2007, he invited her home when no one else was around and had sex with her in his bedroom.
They did not contact each other after that.
Three other charges were considered during his sentencing.
Pleading for leniency, Mr Amolat Singh said his client, a 2007 Ngee Ann Polytechnic graduate in biotechnology, was a diligent and respectable person.
He said he had displayed 'excellent conduct and performance' during his national service.
The lawyer said the two sexually mature and experienced victims had 'initiated and actively sought' to have sex with his client.
Kok also understood that he will have to pay liquidated damages of $50,000 to $60,000 for breach of his training contract, the lawyer added.
An MOE spokesman said it would initiate disciplinary proceedings against him with a view to terminating him from service.
She said the ministry adopted a stringent recruitment process to ensure suitable applicants with a passion to teach are selected, apart from academic qualifications.
She said: 'All teaching applicants are required to declare, at the point of their application, if they have any criminal records and/or if they have ever been convicted in a court of law in any country. Shortlisted candidates undergo further evaluation, including checks for criminal records and interviews. Any applicant with past records or conditions that render him unsuitable for teaching will not be recruited.'
When Kok applied to be a teacher last year, he had falsely declared that he was not undergoing any form of police investigation.
At the time of recruitment, he had a clean record as he had not been convicted by a court of law.
'MOE will review the applicant screening process to identify areas for improvement,' the spokesman said.
[email protected]
He didn't reveal police investigation during recruitment by MOE
By Elena Chong
A TRAINEE teacher was sentenced to 15 months in jail yesterday for having sex with two underage girls he met online a few years ago.
One of the girls that Aaron Kok Chun Cheong, 23, had sex with in 2007 was only 12 at that time. He also had sex with a 15-year-old girl in 2008.
This case comes after that of Jonathan Wong, 23, who was on a teaching scholarship at the University of York in Britain.
Wong was convicted of possessing child pornographic videos on his computer and given a suspended six-month sentence. He was also stripped of his scholarship from the Ministry of Education (MOE).
Kok's offences came to light when the 12-year-old girl was warded at the National University Hospital in July 2008 for stomach pain and vomiting.
She was found to be pregnant, and later told a police officer about her sexual encounters with several men.
Tests of the aborted foetus showed that Kok was not the biological father.
Yesterday, the second-year trainee at the National Institute of Education pleaded guilty to having sex with her in his flat at Bukit Batok.
He also admitted to having sex with a 15-year-old student inside a toilet cubicle for the handicapped at the West Mall shopping centre.
They had made contact in April 2008 through www.habbo.com.sg, an Internet chat website.
Kok came to know the 12-year-old through the same website in late 2006.
In September 2007, he invited her home when no one else was around and had sex with her in his bedroom.
They did not contact each other after that.
Three other charges were considered during his sentencing.
Pleading for leniency, Mr Amolat Singh said his client, a 2007 Ngee Ann Polytechnic graduate in biotechnology, was a diligent and respectable person.
He said he had displayed 'excellent conduct and performance' during his national service.
The lawyer said the two sexually mature and experienced victims had 'initiated and actively sought' to have sex with his client.
Kok also understood that he will have to pay liquidated damages of $50,000 to $60,000 for breach of his training contract, the lawyer added.
An MOE spokesman said it would initiate disciplinary proceedings against him with a view to terminating him from service.
She said the ministry adopted a stringent recruitment process to ensure suitable applicants with a passion to teach are selected, apart from academic qualifications.
She said: 'All teaching applicants are required to declare, at the point of their application, if they have any criminal records and/or if they have ever been convicted in a court of law in any country. Shortlisted candidates undergo further evaluation, including checks for criminal records and interviews. Any applicant with past records or conditions that render him unsuitable for teaching will not be recruited.'
When Kok applied to be a teacher last year, he had falsely declared that he was not undergoing any form of police investigation.
At the time of recruitment, he had a clean record as he had not been convicted by a court of law.
'MOE will review the applicant screening process to identify areas for improvement,' the spokesman said.
[email protected]
