A 72-year-old vegetable seller received two years’ imprisonment on 2 September 2025 for sexually abusing a nine-year-old boy two decades ago. The man used Nintendo Game Boy consoles to lure his victim to his market stall.
The case came to light when the victim, now 30, accidentally encountered his childhood abuser and decided to report the crimes to police on 30 June 2024.
Nintendo Game Boy Becomes Tool for Child Abuse
The abuse occurred between 2005 and 2006 at a wet market where the defendant operated his vegetable stall. The man kept several Nintendo Game Boy consoles at his stall and allowed neighbourhood children to play with them.
The victim, who was in Primary Three at the time, lived near the market and knew the defendant and his wife. His father had also become acquainted with the defendant, whose youngest son was around the same age as the victim.
The defendant told the boy he could only play on the game console if he stayed at the stall. The victim’s family could not afford gaming devices, so he eagerly accepted the offer and visited the stall almost every week.
The sexual abuse began while the boy played games at the stall. The defendant started by touching the victim over his clothes before progressing to direct contact under his pants.
Court documents revealed the abuse occurred multiple times at the market stall, in the defendant’s delivery truck, and at his home. The man also forced the victim to lie naked on his bed while he took instant camera photos using a Polaroid camera.
The victim would ask for the photos to be discarded afterward.
Victim Suffers Decades of Trauma Before Speaking Out
The nine-year-old victim felt uncomfortable but did not know how to resist the man’s advances. He feared the defendant would not allow him to play games if he reacted negatively.
When the boy occasionally rejected the man’s advances, the defendant would give him the cold shoulder. The victim would then have to beg to be allowed to play on the consoles again.
Around 2008 or 2009, about three years after the abuse ended, the victim realised what the man had done was wrong. He kept silent because he felt ashamed and feared nobody would believe him.
The victim also knew his father had borrowed money from the defendant and worried reporting the abuse would create awkwardness between the two adults.
The trauma followed the victim into adulthood. He suffered nightmares about the abuse throughout the years. Medical examination after he made the police report showed he suffered from post-traumatic stress symptoms.
Court proceedings revealed the defendant had also abused another boy who was about seven years old at the time.
The 72-year-old man pleaded guilty to three out of ten charges he faced. The remaining charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.
In court, the defendant sought leniency by explaining his wife was elderly, suffered from hearing impairment, and depended on his care. He said she would be left without help at the market stall if he went to prison.
The judge told the man that despite the time that had passed, the offences he committed were serious.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Jonathan Tan told the court the defendant had lost track of the number of times he had touched the victim due to the time that had elapsed.
A gag order protects the identities of all those involved in the case.
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