Taekwondo coach found guilty of molesting 12-year-old boy, claims it was just an “inside joke”

SINGAPORE: A Taekwondo coach was convicted yesterday (20 Feb) of outraging and insulting a 12-year-old boy’s modesty and performing voyeurism. While the 41-year-old defendant claimed that the incident was nothing more than an “inside joke,” the presiding judge ruled, “There’s clearly nothing innocent about… his intentions.”

The defendant, Neo Shenghua, Kevin, met the Primary 6 student in mid-2020 as he regularly played badminton near the victim’s home. The boy lived with his single mother, a food delivery rider, and their tenant. He reportedly did not share a good relationship with his mother, and his father was out of the picture.

Neo gained the boy’s trust after creating a bond over badminton sessions and video games. In October 2020, Neo asked the boy if he could stay overnight at the boy’s house and was allowed to do so. Before they went to his house, Neo asked the boy if he wanted a sex act. The boy said no and told the court that he was “weirded out” but allowed Neo to sleep over at his home when Neo said he was joking.

The boy testified that he woke up the next morning as he was being molested by the defendant. When confronted, the defendant claimed he was doing it for fun.

The victim later revealed to his friends what the defendant had done and finally called the police under the counsellor’s advice. Neo was arrested and found to have stored 39 obscene photos and an obscene video on his mobile phone, four of which were of boys’ private parts.

Neo defended himself in court and claimed he used a pillow to touch the boy’s private parts, not his finger, and he became afraid when the boy’s private parts suddenly began “moving” while he slept.

He also claimed that his acts were part of an inside joke while telling the judge that he took the photos to show the boy that he had the chance to touch him inappropriately but did not do so.

The judge, who found the victim to be a candid witness, threw Neo’s arguments out. Neo will be back in court for mitigation and sentencing in March. The court will also deal with four other charges against Neo separately.