Man admits to organising commercial child sex tour overseas

[CaptainNeeda]

Man admits to organising commercial child sex tour overseas

Published on Feb 6, 2015 1:04 PM

Chan Chun Hong pleaded guilty on Friday to seven counts of transmitting obscene materials by electronic means, one count of making travel plans, three counts of distributing information to promote commercial sex, and one of having obscene films. -- ST PHOTO: WONG KWAI CHOW

By Elena Chong

SINGAPORE - A 31-year-old man facing more than 100 charges has become the first to be convicted of organising a commercial sex tour overseas and distributing information intended to promote paid sex with a minor outside Singapore.

Chan Chun Hong pleaded guilty on Friday to seven counts of transmitting obscene materials by electronic means, one count of making travel plans, three counts of distributing information to promote commercial sex, and one of having obscene films.

Another 133 charges, mostly for transmitting obscene materials, will be considered when he is sentenced.

Following a tip-off from the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation in 2013, Chan, also known as Chris, was arrested at Changi Airport on March 1 last year.

Information received suggested he had engaged in child sex tourism in countries such as Indonesia, Cambodia and the Philippines.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Yang Ziliang said Chan was addicted to child pornography and had started to source online for platforms to obtain such materials. He also communicated with others to trade and exchange materials online and started a new e-mail address to do this in 2011.

Investigations showed that he saved his collections of child pornography in his portable hard disk and transmitted it to other users in exchange for new material between Dec 2, 2011 and Sept 6, 2012.

The obscene photographs and videos included naked or half-naked young girls in various sexual acts and poses. Some appeared to be as young as two.

Mr Yang said Chan first contacted one "Mike Timothy" in May 2012, to trade pictures and videos of young girls, .

He visited Mike Timothy in the Philippines in early 2013 to photograph young girls in sexy poses.

From Nov 24, 2013, police used a decoy moniker "Teo Dennis" to investigate possible offences against Chan for commercial sex with minors outside Singapore.

Chan subsequently booked air tickets for Teo and himself to travel to the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh to have sex with under-18 girls after Teo had transferred $1,000 to him in February last year.

The planned trip, from April 1 to 4 that year, involved going to karaoke lounges in Phnom Penh to select young girls for sex, and if they were "more adventurous", to the more rural areas to search for even younger girls.

The prosecution is seeking a jail sentence of at least six years for Chan, whose lawyer Rajan Nair asked that the case be adjourned to Feb 16.

The maximum penalty for taking a tour outside Singapore for commercial sex with a minor is 10 years' jail and a fine on each charge.

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[Tauriel]

Commercial sex tour organiser never had sex with any minor, says his lawyers

Published on Feb 16, 2015 7:50 PM

Chan Chun Hong (pictured leaving the State Courts on Feb 6, 2015), who is the first Singaporean to be convicted of organising a commercial sex tour overseas, was allowed on Monday, Feb 16, to revoke his bail pending his sentence next month. -- ST PHOTO: SEAH KWANG PENG

By Elena Chong

SINGAPORE - The first Singaporean to be convicted of organising a commercial sex tour overseas was allowed on Monday to revoke his bail pending his sentence next month.

Before he was led away from the dock to be remanded, Chan Chun Hong turned around to gesture to his parents seated in the public gallery that he was going in.

District Judge Siva Shanmugam will sentence Chan on March 23 on 12 of 145 charges - seven of distributing obscene materials, one of making travel plans for an undercover cop to have commercial sex outside Singapore, three of distributing information to promote conduct of commercial sex with a minor, and one of having obscene films at his Yishun Ring Road home.

The 31-year-old Nanyang Technological University civil engineering gradaute was serving in the Singapore Armed Forces at the time of the distribution of obscene materials offences totalling 135 committed over a one-year period in 2011 and 2012.

 

[TauChiak]

Commercial sex tour organiser jailed more than four years, fined $8k for obscene films

Published on Mar 31, 2015 5:19 PM

Chan Chun Hong had pleaded guilty to 12 of 145 charges, mostly of transmitting obscene material online. -- PHOTO: ST FILE

By Elena Chong

SINGAPORE - The first man to be convicted of organising a commercial sex tour with a minor outside Singapore and distributing information to promote such conduct was jailed for four years and eight months on Tuesday.

Chan Chun Hong was also fined $8,000 for having obscene films at his Yishun Ring Road home on March last year. He had pleaded guilty to 12 of 145 charges, mostly of transmitting obscene material online.

The 31-year-old, also known as Chris, was arrested on March 1 last year at Changi Airport.

Police established his identity after receiving information from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) about a Singaporean distributing child pornography.

Email exchanges between Chan, a paedophile and other users suggested that he had engaged in child sex tourism overseas.

In passing sentence, District Judge Siva Shanmugam said the legislative intent behind the creation of offences under section 376D of the Penal Code was to discourage demand for child sex tourism and prevent the sexual exploitation of young children.

In the present case, Judge Shanmugam said the facts did not disclose that the former army officer and financial consultant was running a syndicated operation.

It appeared to be the only occasion in which Chan had arranged for a commercial sex tour with a minor although there was some suggestion he might have gone on at least one previous tour to the Philippines to exploit young children.

"The age of the minors of intended commercial sex is a matter of grave concern," he said. "There is certainly an element of exploitation as the potential victims here clearly belong to a vulnerable class, namely, the young and poverty-stricken."

He noted that by virtue of his actions, Chan was "creating and enhancing demand for sex with children".

For organising a tour for sex with a minor under 18 years old outside Singapore or distributing information to promote such conduct, Chan could have been jailed for up to 10 years and/or fined on each offence.

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[Deleted member 80916]

Is this Chan related to the other more famous Chan Chun.... ?

 

[Kasumi]

High Court dismisses sex tour organiser's appeal against sentence

An appeal for an lighter sentence by Chan Chun Hong has been dismissed by the High Court on April 20, 2016.PHOTO: ST FILE

Published Apr 20, 2016, 5:09 pm SGT

SINGAPORE - An appeal for an lighter sentence by Chan Chun Hong - the first person in Singapore to be convicted of organising an overseas tour for commercial sex with a minor - was dismissed on Wednesday (April 20) by the High Court.

Chan, a former Singapore Armed Forces captain also known as Chris, is serving a jail term of four years and eight months, handed down by a district court in April last year.

The 32-year-old diagnosed paedophile had pleaded guilty to 12 of 145 charges - seven of transmitting obscene materials, one of making travel plans for an undercover cop to have paid sex with a minor in Cambodia, three of distributing information intended to promote child-sex tourism, and one for having obscene films.

Chan appealed against the individual sentences on four charges - one of organising a child-sex tour and three of distributing information to promote child-sex tourism.

On Wednesday, Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon concluded that, apart from that for one charge, the sentences imposed were not manifestly excessive.

He reduced the sentence, from 20 months to 12 months, for the charge of distributing information to promote child-sex tourism. But this did not impact the overall sentence as this jail term was ordered to run concurrently with two other sentences.

He set a benchmark sentence of 2½ years' jail as a starting point for ad-hoc or opportunistic sex-tour organisers who knowingly make travel arrangements for a prospective child-sex tourist in circumstances such as the current case, where there was no profit motive.

CJ Menon noted that Chan's jail term for organising a child-sex tour could justifiably be higher but, as the prosecution did not appeal, he would not disturb the sentence.

He rejected arguments by Chan that he deserved a lighter sentence, citing, among other things, entrapment and his diagnosis of paedophilia.

The CJ emphasised that a strong deterrent message must be sent to all would-be offenders so as to protect vulnerable child victims from suffering irreparable harm as a result of being trapped in the sex trade.

"Sending countries" must curb demand for child sex tourism from within their borders through legislation and robust enforcement, he said.