A cook took an 11-year-old girl to his parents' home on the pretence that she could play with his daughter, who was her friend. But when no-one was there he molested her.

Ng Guek Kim, 54, was jailed for seven months on Tuesday. He pleaded guilty last month to committing an indecent act with a child under 14 years old at a flat in Hougang sometime in 2009.

He had stopped molesting the girl when she complained that she felt "very itchy". She only reported him to the police in June 2012.

Highlighting aggravating factors, Deputy Public Prosecutor Clement Yong said Ng was put in a position of trust and confidence in that the victim was under his care when he took her to his home. He also pointed out that there were almost 40 years between their ages.

District Judge Marvin Bay said Ng had betrayed the trust placed on him by the victim and her parents to gratify his own perverse desires. "As a father with a daughter of the same age, you should know the gravity of your crime," he said.

Ng could have been fined up to $10,000 and/or jailed for up to five years under the Children and Young Persons Act.