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Dec 21, 2010
No jail time for child porn scholar Jonathan Wong of spore
By Alison de Souza, For The Straits Times
LONDON: Jonathan Wong, the Singaporean undergraduate found with child pornography videos on his computer at the University of York, was yesterday given a suspended sentence for his offences.
A few hours later, the university said that it was expelling him. It is unclear, however, whether Wong, 23, will have to leave the country, as he could potentially lose his student visa.
At York Crown Court yesterday morning, Wong received a six-month sentence suspended for two years. It means that he will not spend any time in jail unless he re-offends during that period.
It is a typical sentence for this type of offence, according to Ms Elizabeth Ogborn, communications manager for the Crown Prosecution Service. The maximum would have been five years.
'He has also been given an eight-month supervision order, which means he has to work with the probation service to address his behaviour during that time,' she told The Straits Times.
In addition, Wong has to forfeit his computer and sign the sex offenders' register for seven years. This will make him known to police as a sex offender. He will also have to notify them if he changes his name or address, or spends more than a week away from home.
However, Ms Ogborn could not say how these arrangements would be affected if Wong has to leave Britain as a result of being expelled. That will be a matter for the probation service and the immigration authorities to decide, but they could not be reached at press time yesterday.
Shortly after the sentencing hearing, the University of York issued a statement saying it was 'a matter of great regret that a member of the university has been convicted of these criminal offences'.
It added: 'On the recommendation of the Vice-Chancellor, University Council has permanently excluded Jonathan Wong on grounds of gross misconduct.'
The university had suspended him after he pleaded guilty to 17 charges of downloading child pornography between July 15, 2008 and March 19 this year.
Wong was found out after suspicious audio files were spotted by other students on the university's internal network.
A police raid in March caught him with 50 video clips of child pornography on the computer at his home on campus. Much of it was hardcore pornography and some videos featured girls as young as six.
A former gifted education programme student at Hwa Chong Institution, Wong had won a Ministry of Education teaching scholarship to study in York. The scholarship was revoked last month, and the ministry has promised to tighten its selection procedures.
Wong was publicly caned in 2002 in the then Chinese High School for peeping in a primary school girl's toilet, but the incident had not been included in his testimonials.
Wong's friends and university mates continued to express their support for him.
Ms Catriona Chau, a 21-year-old Singapore student at Durham University, is a close friend, as is her sister, a psychology student at York, where the Singapore Society has said previously that it does not condone Wong's actions but is 'committed to helping him through this difficult time'.
Ms Chau said: 'He has always been a good friend to me and a genuinely helpful and friendly person. Maybe that's why people are more ready to support him.'
She added: 'I'm glad to hear that he doesn't have to go to jail because I think he's been taught a harsh enough lesson by what's happened so far. This is definitely something that will stay with him for a very long time.'
No jail time for child porn scholar Jonathan Wong of spore
By Alison de Souza, For The Straits Times
LONDON: Jonathan Wong, the Singaporean undergraduate found with child pornography videos on his computer at the University of York, was yesterday given a suspended sentence for his offences.
A few hours later, the university said that it was expelling him. It is unclear, however, whether Wong, 23, will have to leave the country, as he could potentially lose his student visa.
At York Crown Court yesterday morning, Wong received a six-month sentence suspended for two years. It means that he will not spend any time in jail unless he re-offends during that period.
It is a typical sentence for this type of offence, according to Ms Elizabeth Ogborn, communications manager for the Crown Prosecution Service. The maximum would have been five years.
'He has also been given an eight-month supervision order, which means he has to work with the probation service to address his behaviour during that time,' she told The Straits Times.
In addition, Wong has to forfeit his computer and sign the sex offenders' register for seven years. This will make him known to police as a sex offender. He will also have to notify them if he changes his name or address, or spends more than a week away from home.
However, Ms Ogborn could not say how these arrangements would be affected if Wong has to leave Britain as a result of being expelled. That will be a matter for the probation service and the immigration authorities to decide, but they could not be reached at press time yesterday.
Shortly after the sentencing hearing, the University of York issued a statement saying it was 'a matter of great regret that a member of the university has been convicted of these criminal offences'.
It added: 'On the recommendation of the Vice-Chancellor, University Council has permanently excluded Jonathan Wong on grounds of gross misconduct.'
The university had suspended him after he pleaded guilty to 17 charges of downloading child pornography between July 15, 2008 and March 19 this year.
Wong was found out after suspicious audio files were spotted by other students on the university's internal network.
A police raid in March caught him with 50 video clips of child pornography on the computer at his home on campus. Much of it was hardcore pornography and some videos featured girls as young as six.
A former gifted education programme student at Hwa Chong Institution, Wong had won a Ministry of Education teaching scholarship to study in York. The scholarship was revoked last month, and the ministry has promised to tighten its selection procedures.
Wong was publicly caned in 2002 in the then Chinese High School for peeping in a primary school girl's toilet, but the incident had not been included in his testimonials.
Wong's friends and university mates continued to express their support for him.
Ms Catriona Chau, a 21-year-old Singapore student at Durham University, is a close friend, as is her sister, a psychology student at York, where the Singapore Society has said previously that it does not condone Wong's actions but is 'committed to helping him through this difficult time'.
Ms Chau said: 'He has always been a good friend to me and a genuinely helpful and friendly person. Maybe that's why people are more ready to support him.'
She added: 'I'm glad to hear that he doesn't have to go to jail because I think he's been taught a harsh enough lesson by what's happened so far. This is definitely something that will stay with him for a very long time.'
