Jail, caning for ex-police officer who posed as woman to molest teen boy and film others

The teen filed a police report later that day, and Sharizal was tracked down and arrested on Apr 28, 2024.

A forensic examination of Sharizal’s mobile phone uncovered numerous obscene voyeuristic videos.

One video, more than 12 minutes long, captured a then 15-year-old boy in a sexual act with his face clearly shown. 

ENGAGED IN VIDEO CALLS WITH VICTIMS AS A WOMAN

Sharizal admitted that he had recorded this video without the victim’s consent on Jul 31, 2023. He had met the teen on a social media application and pretended to be a woman called Lisa. 

While disguised as a woman, he tricked the teen into committing sexual acts in a video call, while pretending to be engaged in a sexual act himself. He then used the screen-recording function on his device to record the victim, who remained unaware that he was being filmed.

Sharizal kept the video for his own viewing and did not circulate it. 

The police found three other videos, between two and six minutes long, of another victim on Apr 18, 2024.

This victim, then 15, was also engaged in a sexual act and clearly identifiable. Sharizal had used the same modus operandi to trick this teen.

The prosecution urged the court to sentence Sharizal to between 36 and 39 months’ jail and six to eight strokes of the cane.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Sheldon Lim said in his submissions that there was an “extremely high” degree of sexual exploitation.

“The victim, who was vulnerable by virtue of his young age, naively believed the lies and falsehoods peddled to him by the accused,” said Mr Lim. He noted that Sharizal had posed as a woman in need of help to lure the boy to a secluded staircase landing.

“The offence was clearly premeditated. From the statement of facts, it is clear that the accused, who had left his house in disguise, had targeted young male individuals with a pre-planned routine,” added Mr Lim.

Sharizal’s lawyer Sanjiv Vaswani sought a jail term of between 22 and 28 months and argued that caning was not warranted.

Mr Vaswani said his client’s case lacked the aggravating factors that would typically justify caning, including that Sharizal had not distributed the obscene material and was not involved in organised crime.

The lawyer also cited Sharizal’s guilty plea and cooperation with the authorities as significant mitigating factors.

“The accused’s personal history strongly supports the conclusion that the present offences are an aberration,” Mr Vaswani said.

“Prior to these offences, he had led a law-abiding life and has no antecedents whatsoever, which indicates that he is not a recalcitrant offender.”

Mr Vaswani added that Sharizal had served in the Singapore Police Force for 17 years and received several awards and commendations, including an award from the Ministry of Home Affairs for his assistance during the Little India riot.

In sentencing, Deputy Principal District Judge Kessler Soh said deterrence should be a key consideration, adding that a substantial jail term and caning were needed to deter like-minded offenders.

The judge found the sentencing range proposed by the prosecution to be appropriate.