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Man sexually exploited 71-year-old woman with dementia after walking her home, admits to rape
Mohamad Zakir Jaafar thought he could get away with his crimes since the victim was senile and would not tell anyone.
Lydia Lam
07 Jul 2026 04:35PM (Updated: 07 Jul 2026 04:39PM)
www.channelnewsasia.com
SINGAPORE: When a 51-year-old man encountered a senile 71-year-old woman who was lost in the neighbourhood, he walked her home but later visited her repeatedly to rape and sexually assault her.
The woman's son discovered the offences while reviewing closed-circuit television footage taken at her home.
The sexual predator, Mohamad Zakir Jaafar, pleaded guilty on Tuesday (Jul 7) to two charges of rape and one charge of molestation. Other charges will be considered for sentencing.
The court heard that Zakir was 51 at the time of the offences and living with his wife.
In June 2022, at the void deck of a public housing block, his wife encountered the victim, who was lost and unable to find her way back to her home, where she lived alone.
The victim had been formally diagnosed with dementia in February 2019, and in 2021, she was found mentally incapable of handling her own finances and welfare.
Zakir's wife helped her home after getting the address from the woman's identity card.
She later told Zakir about this and said she suspected that the victim was senile.
About a week later, Zakir came across the victim, who was lost near a mall in their neighbourhood.
He walked the victim home. The victim told Zakir that she lived alone, and that her sons would visit her once in a while.
Zakir observed that the victim was unaware of her surroundings and did not know how to go home, concluding that she was indeed senile.
After this encounter, he returned to the victim's home at least four more times between June 2022 and January 2023.
He would go there at night after his work shift, show the victim pornographic videos and perform sexual acts on her.
He believed that he would get away with it because the victim would not tell anyone, given her mental condition.
At about 1am one day in November 2022, Zakir went to the victim's flat and showed a pornographic video on his phone to her before making her perform sexual acts that amount to rape.
The court heard that the victim did not consent to this since she lacked the mental capacity to consent to a sexual relationship.
Zakir repeated the acts at about 1am on Jan 3, 2023.
The incident on this occasion was captured by the closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera installed by the victim's sons in the living room.
The victim's younger son reviewed the footage shortly after, and it showed Zakir entering the flat and engaging in sexual acts with his mother.
He alerted his brother and a police report was filed. Zakir was arrested that same day.
The prosecution called this an egregious sexual assault case in which Zakir repeatedly exploited a vulnerable victim with no mental capacity.
They are seeking 15 years and one month's jail to 16 years and three months' jail for Zakir, with another 12 months' jail in lieu of caning. He is now 55 and cannot be caned.
Deputy Public Prosecutors James Chew and Tan Jun Ya said that Zakir had visited the victim's home at night at least four times to avoid detection.
The victim is also a vulnerable person with severe dementia such that she was unable to resist or protect herself or properly complain about the abuse.
The court asked for further submissions and adjourned the case for sentencing to a later date.
For rape, a person can be jailed for up to 20 years and fined or caned. If the victim is a vulnerable person, the maximum penalty is doubled.
