Public servant gets 30 months' jail for underage sex

SINGAPORE - A 27-YEAR-OLD public servant whose wife is expecting their second child has been jailed for 30 months for underage sex. His victim was just 13 years old.

Muhammad Zhafir Ahmad on Wednesday admitted to five counts of sex with a person below 16 years old. Twelve other counts were taken into consideration.

The victim's family had been friends with Zhafir, yet just one day before his wedding in 2011, he accepted the teenager as his girlfriend.

He started having sex with her in April last year when his wife was pregnant with their first child.

District Judge Lee Poh Choo ticked off Zhafir for not only betraying the trust of a young girl and her family, but also his wife, telling him: "You have no conscience."

Assistant Public Prosecutor Raja Mohan said Zhafir came to know the victim's mother in the course of his work in 2008.

The public agency he works for and the name of the minor are being withheld to prevent the victim from being identified.

Zhafir and his then fiancee, whom he later married, became close friends with the mother.

He met the victim for the first time in March 2011.

Six months later, he sent her a text message to ask if she would watch a movie with him, together with her siblings.

As the siblings were not free, she ended up watching the movie alone with him. The pair kept in touch through phone calls and text messages.

"The accused accepted her as his girlfriend just one day before he got married, without the knowledge of his fiancee," said Mr Raja Mohan.

In April last year, the pair went to Universal Studios. On their way home, Zhafir asked if he could have sex with the girl and she agreed. He told her to keep the matter a secret. The offences took place at her home.

The next month, he picked her up from school in his car and drove her to a multi-storey carpark in Jurong West. She went home to change out of her uniform, then returned to the carpark and engaged in sexual activities with Zhafir in his car.

They had another tryst at a multi-storey carpark in Dover Crescent in late August.

The offences came to light the following month when the victim's mother found pictures on her daughter's mobile phone of the pair kissing.

Zhafir could have been jailed for up to 10 years and/or fined on each charge.

elena@sph.com.sg

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