Who is Ashton Chen? Alvinology takes a look at the badminton star turned alleged sex offender

In a report from The Straits Times, former Singaporean badminton athlete Ashton Chen says he plans to plead guilty in a sexual offence case where he is accused of committing consensual sexual acts with an underage girl.

First charged in April, the Olympic player appeared before court last Monday June 4 and faced the incidents that allegedly happened in 2014. The name of the victim has been withheld, and the nature of their relationship was not revealed either.

According to reports, there were two incidents of oral sex that had allegedly happened with him and the underage girl. The first incident happened on a staircase on Tampines Street a few years ago. Two other incidents of oral sex happened on Simei Street properties.

Who is Ashton Chen?

The spotlight was put on this case of consensual sex with a minor mostly because of Ashton’s status as a former badminton player.

His now-defunct LinkedIn profile showed that he has participated in several tournaments, which include the Southeast Asian Games (SEA), World Championships, and Commonwealth Games.

In the world ranking for men’s singles in badminton, his highest ranking was No.47. He retired from playing in 2014, where he had ranked No.69.

Photo from ActiveSG

During the Singapore Badminton team revamp in 2011, he was chosen to stay while several other members of the team where asked to step down unless they were willing to remain as sparring partners. This was at the height of his career, and he was No.1 on the team.

According to The Straits Times, “Chen first made headlines in 2007 after beating Malaysia’s former world No. 1 Roslin Hashim at the Asian Satellite tournament. Chen was also a member of the men’s teams that took silver at the 2007 SEA Games and bronze at the 2009 and 2011 editions.”

In 2014, just after he stepped down from the national team, Chen still played in local tournaments.

The incidents of sex acts performed on Chen happened after he had left the team.

What’s going to happen to Ashton Chen now?

According to reports, Ashton is set to appear again on June 27 in the district court. He is currently out on $15,000 bail and was said to appear expressionless during the trial.

What day you think of this case of consensual sex with an underage girl? Amos Yee says that pedophiles aren’t wrong, as long as the child consents.

Let us know in the comments!

Header image from Lianhe Zaobao