A 59-year-old man was charged in court today (Dec. 6) for allegedly sexually assaulting a two-year-old girl at a preschool.

The man, a non-teaching staff, has since been dismissed by the preschool, and the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) is investigating the case.

The man, who is from Malaysia, is a Singapore permanent resident, according to The Straits Times (ST).

He was charged in court with one count of using criminal force to a person below 14 years old with intent to outrage modesty.

On Nov. 9, the man had allegedly used criminal force on the toddler to place his hand inside her diaper, and used his fingers to molest her.

He cannot be named due to a gag order to protect the victim’s identity.

The accused will be remanded for one week, during which he will be taken out for investigations.

The case has been adjourned to Dec. 13, reported ST.

Those found guilty of using criminal force to a person below 14 years old with intent to outrage modesty can be jailed for up to five years, fined, caned, or receive any combination of such punishments.

Case under investigation

In response to Mothership's queries, the ECDA said that they were made aware of the case on Dec. 5.

ECDA has commenced investigations. As the case is currently under investigation by ECDA and the police, they shared that they are unable to comment further on it.

According to ECDA, the non-teaching staff in question has been dismissed by the preschool.

ECDA said it will not allow the staff to work in the preschool sector while investigations are ongoing.

Meanwhile, the preschool has been instructed to closely monitor its children and provide close supervision and guidance to its staff.

ECDA will also be working with the preschool to ensure the safety and well-being of enrolled children.

Checks made on preschool staff before deployment

ECDA added that it checks if any staff have any previous criminal offences involving children, or have been barred earlier from working in the preschool sector, prior to deploying them at their preschools.

All preschools are expected to report all serious incidents that affect the safety of children within 24 hours.

"If it is proven there is unreasonable delay in the reporting, we will take the preschool to task," ECDA stated.

Top photo from Unsplash