KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian man has been sentenced to nine years, four months and seven weeks in jail in Singapore for molesting toddlers at a pre-school.
In a case prosecutors described as “one of the most horrendous acts of sexual abuse” committed in such a setting, the man, Teo Guan Huat, 61, pleaded guilty on Oct 27 to three counts of molestation, with five other similar charges considered during sentencing today.
District Judge Vince Gui said Teo’s offences were abhorrent and represented an abuse of trust, stressing that the victims — three girls aged between one and two — were young and defenceless.
According to court proceedings cited by The Straits Times, Teo, a Singapore permanent resident and former cook at the pre-school, repeatedly inserted his hands into the toddlers’ nappies while they were in the nap room at the pre-school, committing the acts several times a week between May and November 2023 when teachers were not watching.
Although hired as a cook, Teo often helped with the children’s showers, arranged their bedding and patted them to sleep — tasks not part of his job.
Teo resigned in November 2023 after a staff member reviewing CCTV footage on Nov 16 saw him molesting a child.
Members of the pre-school’s management confronted him and asked him to leave on Nov 23.
A police report was filed only on Dec 2, and it was unclear who made it or why there was a delay.
Deputy public prosecutor Quek Lu Yi told the court that the CCTV system was reformatted after the incident, erasing crucial footage.
Police later managed to recover the deleted recordings, leading to Teo’s arrest on Dec 4, and his subsequent charges two days later.
During investigations, Teo admitted that he targeted toddlers “because they could not speak up.”
He also told authorities he had erectile dysfunction and had never been in a relationship, saying he “wanted to see and wanted to touch.”
A psychiatric report by the Institute of Mental Health diagnosed Teo with paedophilic disorder, but Quek said the condition did not impair his judgment or self-control.
Under Singapore law, molesting a child under 14 is punishable by up to five years’ jail, a fine, caning, or any combination of the three.
However, Teo cannot be caned as he is over 50.
In February 2024, four women aged 48 to 66 linked to the pre-school’s management were charged for allegedly concealing information about the assaults. Their identities are protected under a gag order.
One of them, aged 66, later received a stern warning and discharge amounting to an acquittal in July.
Following investigations, the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) fined the pre-school $26,200 in May 2024, banned it from taking new pupils, and shortened its licence tenure from three years to six months.
Three management staff were barred from the sector.
In Parliament on Nov 6, Minister for Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli said ECDA would deploy artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the review of CCTV footage in pre-schools and detect potential misconduct.
CCTV cameras became mandatory in all pre-schools and government-funded early intervention centres in July 2024.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
