Swimming instructor jailed
By Shaffiq Alkhatib | Posted: 21 September 2011 1941 hrs
SINGAPORE: A freelance swimming instructor was jailed on Wednesday for 18 months for making a young student perform an indecent act on him.
To convince his student to perform the indecent act on him, the instructor told the girl she could skip a test if she touched his private parts.
The then-seven-year-old complied and he made the girl perform the same act on him on three separate occasions between October and December last year.
The freelance swimming instructor was not named to protect the identity of the victim.
Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Toh Puay San said the man conducted swimming lessons for the girl and her younger sister at their condominium pool.
But he was caught after the traumatised girl told her mother, on 20 December, about her ordeal.
The police later raided the man's Ang Mo Kio flat and seized items including 15 video compact discs containing obscene films.
The man's lawyer, Amarick Gill, told District Judge Hamidah Ibrahim his client had realised the gravity of his offences.
Mr Gill added he had also received testimonials from the man's other clients who gave him "glowing" reviews about his performance.
The lawyer asked the judge to impose a sentence that was "fair" to both the victim and his client.
But the prosecution pressed for a deterrent sentence saying the girl was unable to sleep well after her abuse and had been advised to seek psychiatric help.
The man, who pleaded guilty to three out of six charges, had abused the trust given to him, DPP Toh said.
-CNA/wk
