Singapore – Unable to afford paid sex, a man posed as an agent for wealthy “sugar daddies” and tricked 11 women into performing sex acts with him as part of a “testing” period for his clients.
De Beers Wong Tian Jun, 39, pleaded guilty on Thursday (Mar 18) to 10 charges, including cheating, criminal intimidation and possession of obscene photos for circulation, reported channelnewsasia.com. Another 26 charges will be taken into consideration during sentencing.
In 2015, Wong wanted to have paid sex but realised he could not afford the prices he saw advertised in online listings. He then came up with a scheme to advertise for “sugar babes” or paid escorts who offer sexual services to “sugar daddies” in exchange for compensation.
In his advertisement, Wong lied that he was a freelance agent connected with wealthy clients seeking people “serious about earning good money.” He promised escorts clients who could pay S$8,000 to S$20,000 a month.
Between April 2015 and January 2016, at least 11 women aged 18 to 24 responded to Wong’s ad in Locanto. Before referring them to a client, the women first had to send their nude photos or engage in sexual acts with him.
Wong claimed this was a necessary step for “evaluation” as his clients would assess if they were suitable for a “sugar daddy” setup.
It should be noted that Wong had no clients and lied to have sex with the women without paying them. He obtained nude photos or filmed his sex acts with them. Afterwards, he would threaten them to publicise those photos and videos if they did not engage in sexual activity with him again.
The report noted that all the victims suffered from mental anguish after their encounters with Wong, some experiencing recurring nightmares. Others suffered from fear, paranoia and anxiety that he would leak their intimate photos or videos.
One of the victims, a 24-year-old when she came across Wong’s advertisements in October 2015, testified how she experienced anxiety attacks from her encounter. She was told she could earn S$10,000 to S$20,000 a month from one of Wong’s clients.
When she hesitated to give him nude photos, Wong informed her that “all my girls take skimpy pics, so you will be on a losing end”.
The woman eventually gave him the photos, and a photoshoot with Wong followed. He told her that he needed to have sex with her. This was a way for him to rate her performance for his clients.
Wong claimed that “sugar babes” who refused this step would end up with lower-paying clients. To win her over, Wong informed her that he had a client interested in her, a client who had paid a previous “sugar babe” S$16,000.
They met at a hotel where Wong took topless photos of the victim. He then convinced her to have unprotected sex with him under the pretence that he had to “test” her.
Following their meeting, the woman was not introduced to any clients. She would instead experience headaches, nausea, giddiness and shortness of breath when recalling the encounter. The woman was later diagnosed with adjustment disorder with anxiety.
Wong continued contacting her, and when she did not respond within 12 hours, he would coax her by saying he would introduce another “sugar babe” to his client.
As proof, he forwarded screenshots of conversations he claimed to have had with his clients. The screenshots showed he was unable to answer their questions regarding her performance.
The woman asked Wong to delete her photos in October 2015. Despite initially lying that he had done so, Wong contacted her in January 2016 and told her that he had retrieved backups of the nude photos. He said he would delete them only if she provided him with sexual services.
“Now I have to pass your photos to my friends in case anything happen(s) to me they will use the photos as they wish,” said Wong after the woman informed him she was doing him a favour by not going to the police.
She filed a police report a few days later.
The prosecution asked for at least 30 months’ imprisonment for Wong’s “sustained and egregious offending against multiple victims” over 10 months. It was noted that he premeditated and planned his “systematic approach”, such as creating conversations with his “clients” and manipulating his victims to coerce them into sexual acts.
Meanwhile, the defence noted that Wong had been diagnosed with adjustment disorder which affected his decision-making. The court heard that the man was remorseful and has stayed out of trouble.
His lawyer added that Wong still had anxiety from the proceedings, with investigations that “weighed heavily on his mind,” starting six years ago. Wong suffered from poor health and had a stroke earlier this year.
Wong’s sentencing is scheduled for next month./TISG
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