S'pore silat instructor, 59, kisses female student, 14, on forehead & cheek, sends her sexual messages saying he's 'open minded' - Mothership

He operated under the guise of asking her to perform a salam greeting.

A silat instructor in Singapore asked his 14-year-old student to give him a traditional Malay greeting, bringing his hand to her face.

However, he instead pulled her in to kiss her.

The Straits Times (ST) reported that the man, now 59, was sentenced to five months and five weeks’ jail on Sep. 22 2026.

He pleaded guilty to one count each of molestation and being involved in sexual communication with a minor, with two other molestation charges considered during sentencing. 

A gag order has been placed to protect the victim's identity.

According to court documents seen by Mothership, the victim started learning silat, a form of traditional Malay martial arts, in November 2024.

Shortly after she began lessons, the man, who was 57 at the time, asked her to perform the salam greeting on him.

The salam greeting involves taking an elder's hand and bringing it to one's forehead as a show of respect.

When the victim took the offender's hand, he instead pulled her towards him and kissed her on the forehead over her hijab.

He repeated the act twice under the same premise a few months later.

On the third time, he kissed her directly on her cheek, close to her lips.

In February 2025, the offender texted her on Telegram.

He used the "disappearing messages" function such that the messages would automatically be deleted after a certain time.

The court heard that he sent her sexually charged messages, asking her if she wanted to know what men were like and if she was curious about sex.

He added, "Don't worry, I'm open minded".

He also told her that their conversation would be "[their] secret", instructing her not to tell anyone else and to ensure that the chat was deleted.

The prosecutor told the court that he also had shown his intention to groom a minor by telling her in Malay, "if know the pleasure [of kissing a man] surely would want to try" and that she should find someone "experienced" like him.

As she felt that it was improper for a teacher to send such messages to a student, the victim took screenshots of the texts.

Her mother later came across the messages while looking through her daughter's phone.

They reported the matter to the police afterwards.

The offender was arrested on Mar. 18 2026.

He was afforded some leniency as he pleaded guilty at the earliest possible stage.

According to ST, he will begin his sentence on Oct. 12 2026.