SINGAPORE — The prosecution described the case as a "deeply troubling and reprehensible act of exploitation". On Oct 10, 2023, an elderly man approached a woman who has Down syndrome and molested her after offering the victim $2 to lure her away from the public eye.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Adelle Tai said that the 24-year-old woman was an "acutely vulnerable" victim who has an IQ of 40. According to the Institute of Mental Health website, an IQ of 70 or below is indicative of intellectual disability.
On Nov 28, District Judge John Ng said that the case involved a "vulnerable person who preyed on a vulnerable victim" and sentenced wheelchair user Omar Aziz, 70, to 18 months' jail.
He had earlier pleaded guilty to a molestation charge.
Details about the victim and where she lived at the time of the offence cannot be disclosed due to a gag order to protect her identity.
The DPP said that the woman was walking to an MRT station in the northern part of Singapore at around 4pm when Omar, who was then on a personal mobility device, approached her.
He offered the victim $2 and asked her to follow him to a secluded corner.
The woman complied and he molested her soon after.
She went home after her ordeal and told her helper about what had happened.
The helper alerted the victim's parents and her father lodged a police report later that day.
The authorities managed to trace Omar and officers arrested him on Oct 11, 2023.
On Nov 28, DPP Tai urged Judge Ng to sentence him to at least 16 months' jail, adding that Omar had preyed on the victim's "naivete... so he could satiate his lust. Such conduct is as ghastly as it is deplorable".
Defence lawyer Mohamed Arshad pleaded for Omar to be given 10 months' jail, stressing that the offender was sorry for what he had done.
In mitigation, the lawyer from Fernandez law firm also said that his client has heart disease and a compressed spinal cord.
Omar is now out on bail of $15,000, and he is expected to begin serving his sentence on Dec 12.
This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
