Reformative training for having underage sex again

A full-time national serviceman who had sex with a girl under 16 years old while on probation for similar offences was sentenced to reformative training yesterday.

Gil Dominic Barbosa Rojas, 20, a Singapore permanent resident, had admitted to two counts of having sex with a 15-year-old girl on April 1 and 8 this year, and with a 13-year-old girl sometime between January and February last year.

A Community Court heard last month that Rojas, a Filipino, came to know the 15-year-old girl on Facebook in June last year. They exchanged contact numbers and started to communicate over the phone.

They eventually met at his home in Anchorvale Road on April 1. He asked her to be his girlfriend, to which she agreed.

They had consensual and unprotected sex in his bedroom.

A week later, she did not go to school and instead, met Rojas at his home. They had sex again.

The victim's mother was checking her Facebook account when she saw Rojas' messages to her and began questioning her. The victim then admitted that she had sex with Rojas.

The mother lodged a police report on April 15.

Further investigation showed that Rojas and the second victim, then 13, befriended each other through a WhatsApp group chat in January last year. They started a relationship that same month.

Subsequently, he brought her to his home, where he had unprotected sex with her. He was then 18.

Rojas was placed on 24 months' probation in October last year, after pleading guilty to three underage sex offences and one of committing an indecent act.

For the latest cases, a progress report stated that Rojas lacked remorse, has a high risk of offending, and requires supervision in a closed and structured environment.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Krystle Chiang said Rojas had justified his offences by saying the victims told him they were of legal age, that is, 16 years old.

District Judge Lim Keng Yeow said that despite having faced 16 charges previously and being placed on probation, it was clear from Rojas' conduct that he was not suitable for probation but needed a different form of rehabilitation. The judge sentenced him to a stint in the Reformative Training Centre (RTC).

Those serving time in RTC stay between 18 months and three years behind bars, and undergo a strict regimen that includes foot drills and counselling.

elena@sph.com.sg

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