SINGAPORE — While on board bus service 105, a recalcitrant paedophile stroked the thighs of two boys on separate occasions.

When Seyad Sulaiman Maideen Pillai saw one of the boys again on the same bus, he repeated the act.

During his plea guilty hearing on Thursday (21 November), it emerged that the 53-year-old had a long string of sexual offences against underaged victims dating back to 1986. Most were committed against boys.

Seyad admitted to two out of three charges of outraging the modesty of a person under 14 years old, with the third to be considered for sentencing.

For the protection of the public, Deputy Public Prosecutor Dwayne Lum called for a preventive detention (PD) report for Seyad, who has been diagnosed with pedophilic disorder and mild intellectual disability.

A corrective training (CT) report and preventive detention report were called for Seyad, who works as a cleaner.

Preventive detention is usually given to repeat offenders and lasts between seven and 20 years without remission. Corrective training, which also does not have a remission period, lasts from five to 14 years.

Facts of the case

Around late May this year, the first victim, a nine-year-old boy, boarded bus 105 at about 7.30am. The boy saw Seyad and recognised him from a past interaction on the same bus.

Seyad patted the seat next to him, and the boy sat down. Seyad then gave the boy $2, which the boy accepted out of fear of appearing rude.

The older man then stroked the boy’s thigh and placed his arm around his shoulder. Though uncomfortable, the boy did not push him away as he felt scared.

The act lasted for up to five minutes until Seyad alighted. Before alighting, Seyad mimicked a kiss at the boy.

Molested second boy in same bus service

On 11 June, Seyad targetted a 12-year-old boy. At about 7.30am, the second victim boarded the same bus service with his 10-year-old sister. He sat separately from his sister.

Seyad asked the boy to join him in the last row of the bus and the boy complied as he thought Seyad needed help.

Seyad then asked, “Where is my friend”, referring to the nine-year-old boy he molested. The boy replied that he did not know what Seyad was talking about.

“The accused then asked the second victim ‘do you love me?’ and the second victim said no,” the prosecution said.

The man then stroked the boy’s thigh and touched his lower back and shoulders, until the boy pushed his hand and walked away.

The boy joined his sister in the front of the bus and told his father about the incident. His mother lodged a police report that day.

From then on, the boy’s father accompanied him on the bus for his safety. Three days after the incident, the boy spotted Seyad on the same bus service and alerted his father.

His father informed the police, who asked him to keep track of Seyad.

Father-and-son followed Seyad off the bus near Far East Plaza but lost sight of him later. They met up with police officers, who later located and arrested Seyad as he was working as a cleaner at Far East Plaza.

The nine-year-old boy also came forward about his incident during further investigations.

History of sexual offences against children

Seyad’s previous offences date back to 1986. In July 1986, he was fined $500 for molesting a 10-year-old girl. In August 1995, he was jailed six months and caned three strokes for molesting a 10-year-old boy.

In June 1999, he was given corrective training of five years and six strokes of the cane for sexual offences against a boy.

In March 2012, Seyad received a six-year corrective training stint for molesting a seven-year-old boy.

DPP Lum cited a need to protect the public, given Seyad’s propensity to reoffend. Referring to an Institute of Mental Health report dated 19 June this year, DPP Lum said that Seyad’s mild intellectual disability affected his ability to learn from incarceration. In the report, Seyad had said he touched the boys as he was “excited by them” and that he “did not know why (his) mind is like that”.

He claimed to have touched ten boys on buses since his release in 2018.

His lawyer, Diana Ngiam, sought both a CT and PD report, stating, “The court and I are hamstrung in thinking of what sentencing option is available for this kind of accused person. My opinion is that incarcerating for a long time is not going to (help) him much.”

Story continues