Former preschool cook jailed over molestation of three toddlers during naptime

SINGAPORE: A former preschool cook who molested three toddlers during naptime was sentenced to nine years, four months, and seven weeks’ imprisonment on 10 November 2025.

The court described his offences as “abhorrent” and a “gross abuse of trust”.

The offender, Teo Guan Huat, a 61-year-old Malaysian and Singapore permanent resident, had pleaded guilty to three counts of molestation of minors, with another five charges considered for sentencing.

The preschool where the offences occurred cannot be identified due to a gag order protecting the victims, who were between one and two years old at the time.

Discovery of the offences

Teo was hired as a cook but also assisted in escorting children for showers and caring for them during naptime, despite his role being limited to kitchen duties.

In November 2023, another employee discovered his actions while reviewing CCTV footage for an unrelated matter.

The footage showed Teo inserting his hand under a toddler’s diaper.

Following the discovery, the school’s management confronted Teo, who resigned on 23 November 2023. However, the incident was only reported to the police in early December 2023, after the school’s CCTV system had been reformatted, deleting earlier footage.

Police later recovered some of the deleted recordings, which captured parts of the abuse. Teo was arrested on 4 December 2023 and admitted to molesting three girls, all of whom he knew by name.

Court findings and psychiatric assessment

In court, Teo said he suffered from erectile dysfunction and committed the acts as he had “never had relations with a female”.

A psychiatric evaluation diagnosed him with paedophilic disorder.

The prosecution sought a 10-year jail term, calling the case one of the most serious incidents of sexual abuse in a preschool setting. The victims, it noted, were “extremely vulnerable and completely unable to defend themselves”.

Defence counsel Revi Shanker requested a six-year sentence, arguing that Teo was remorseful but questioned why the preschool had allowed him to care for the children despite his role being limited to kitchen work.

Teo was ineligible for caning due to his age. Each count of molesting a minor carries a potential penalty of up to five years’ imprisonment and a fine.

Regulatory action against the preschool

The Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) imposed regulatory sanctions on the preschool.

These included a S$26,200 fine, a restriction on new enrolments, and a shortened licence tenure from 36 months to six months.

ECDA also acted against four members of the school’s management, barring three from employment in the preschool sector from April 2024. All four individuals have since been removed from their positions by the preschool operator.

The agency said these actions were necessary to “uphold the safety and integrity of early childhood education environments”.

In delivering the sentence, the judge said Teo’s offences were “a gross betrayal of the trust placed in him by the children’s parents and the preschool”.

The court emphasised that adults working in early childhood settings have “an unequivocal duty of care” and that any breach of this duty warranted severe punishment.