Two of 10 men charged in court on Wednesday with having
commercial sex with an underage escort have each been sentenced to
12 weeks' jail.
Muhammad Ibrahim, 24, and 32-year-old Alvin Tan Zi Yu each
pleaded guilty to one charge of paid sex with a minor. The offences
occurred in February.
Muhammad, the first of the group to plead guilty, admitted that
it was a mistake on his part. In pleading for leniency, the bell
hop promised not to commit the offence again.
In a mitigation plea, Tan's lawyer said his client suffers from
spine and limb injuries from two previous road traffic accidents.
This contributed to his marital problems as he was taunted for
being impotent and lacking libido.
In an urge to prove his manhood, the lawyer said Tan found a
website offering massage services.
The court heard that Tan's relationship with his wife improved
after he confided in her about his wrongdoing. Tan and his wife are
now expecting their first child.
The lawyer also pointed out that the escort had stated she was
older than her real age on the website.
The remaining eight men are aged 22 to 38.
They are technicians Dzul Hilmie Ramli, 32, Muhammad Sufyan
Misbari, 31, Mohamed Yazid Bashir, 28, driver Babu Suppiah, 32,
supervisor Sudirman Yuri, 38, National serviceman Abu Shah Mohamed
Abdul Mutalif, 22, Myanmar national Lu Maw, 33, and financial
consultant Khoo Yi Xuan, 24.
Each man faces one charge of paid sex with the social
escort.
The girl, who was 16 at the time of the offences, cannot be
named due to a gag order. It is understood that she is currently
studying.
It is an offence under the law to have commercial sex with
someone under 18 years old.
Court documents state that the offences allegedly took place
between October last year and March this year. The men paid the
escort between S$180 and S$400 for her services, which took place
in hotels islandwide.
Of the 10, four have indicated that they will be pleading guilty
while three have claimed trial.
Each accused can be jailed up to seven years and fined if
convicted.
Two other men implicated in the case are expected to be charged
as well.
The court heard that one of them, American Payton Scott Velo,
44, attempted suicide on Tuesday. He has been warded at the
Institute of Mental Health.
Channel NewsAsia understands that the case was uncovered when
the pimp, Malcolm Graham Head, was arrested for robbery along with
four accomplices.
The accomplices are Veronica Patricia Rio, 18, Ahmad Habiibul
Hakim Assalafi, 19, Nuurul Aliyyah Abdul Talib, 23, and Nur Azilah
Ithnin, 21.
Head, 32, was charged in court in March with robbery and
vice-related offences.
Head faces 41 charges, 29 of which are for managing a brothel,
procuring women for prostitution, and living on their earnings.
The other charges include theft, causing hurt, as well as
traffic and drug offences.
Court documents state that Head and one of his helpers, Veronica
Patricia Rio, would feed the minor a drug called "Ice" when the
escort did not want to serve clients.
The underage escort would also be assaulted by the two.
Head has claimed trial. His case will be mentioned on 10
July.
