Updated: 10/01/2013 19:40 | By Channel NewsAsia
Man jailed 15 months for having consensual sex with underage girl
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SINGAPORE: A father of two who held two jobs to support his family has been sentenced to 15 months' jail for having consensual sex with an underage girl.
49-year-old Ravi Chander admitted to having consensual sex with a then 15-year-old student in June and July last year.
The incidents took place at a forested area along Nepal Road and a multi-storey carpark in Bukit Batok West.
Court documents stated that the two met online through "Locanto.com", a classified advertising network.
The minor was looking for a job and indicated that she was 18 years old as this was the minimum age requirement for registration.
The girl contacted the accused and he proposed to have sex.
She agreed.
Two other related charges were taken into consideration for sentencing purposes.
The prosecution pushed for a custodial sentence in its submissions, highlighting that the accused was 32 years older than the minor when they first had sex.
It added that Ravi knew the minor's real age before the incidents but was "undeterred and unfazed by this disclosure".
In mitigation, the defence said Ravi has to support his family.
He had held two jobs and worked six days a week as a sales and marketing executive in the day and a bouncer at night.
But District Judge Low Wee Ping pointed out that the law is meant to protect young girls because they are too immature to consent to sex.
Thus, he said the law must be harsh to protect the girls from sexual experimentation.
In sentencing, Judge Low said he is shocked by the difference in age between the accused and the minor and that was an aggravating factor. - CNA/ms
