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High Court Convicts Former Wah!Banana Comedy Actor for Sexual Assault

 




A former actor from the popular Singapore comedy channel Wah!Banana was convicted of rape, sexual assault by penetration, and molestation on March 21, 2025, after a High Court trial.

Lev Panfilov, a Russian-born Singapore permanent resident, was found guilty of all four charges against him. The case involved a woman he met on the dating app Tinder, whom he sexually assaulted in his residence after they had met at a restaurant earlier that day.

The victim’s identity is protected by a gag order.

Court Ruling and Key Evidence

Delivering the verdict, Justice Pang Khang Chau described the victim as an "unusually convincing" witness, though he acknowledged that her testimony had certain challenges.

The defense had highlighted several points to question her credibility, including:

  • The fact that she provided her home address to Panfilov after the incident so he could book a private-hire vehicle for her.
  • Her continued response to his text messages in the following days.
  • A three-day delay before seeking medical attention for the pain she experienced.
  • Apparent inconsistencies in her statements about whether she screamed during the assault.
  • A request she allegedly made for a doctor's memo to show to Panfilov’s family, which she later could not recall.

Despite these arguments, Justice Pang ruled that most of these issues had reasonable explanations and that minor inconsistencies did not affect her overall credibility. In contrast, he found Panfilov to be an unreliable witness, stating that his inconsistencies appeared to be deliberate attempts to distance himself from the incident.

Panfilov, wearing a purple prison jumpsuit, kept his head bowed and frequently looked at his relatives in the courtroom as the verdict was read.

Incident Details

The prosecution’s case was that Panfilov sexually assaulted the victim on January 12, 2021. The victim, an aspiring scriptwriter who also worked as a model-actress, had connected with Panfilov on Tinder and sought his help with her script.

They met at a Wine Connection restaurant to discuss her project and later went to Panfilov’s residence to continue working. While watching comedians on YouTube in his room, Panfilov suddenly kissed the victim before escalating to sexual assault.

The victim, feeling depressed and distressed, initially refrained from telling her family. However, after experiencing persistent pain in her lower abdomen and vaginal area, she consulted a doctor. The doctor advised her to report the incident to the police.

She first spoke to police officers on January 16, 2021, but hesitated to file a formal report, fearing disbelief and public exposure. Eventually, on January 18, 2021, after confiding in her mother, she officially reported the assault.

Defense Argument and Verdict

Panfilov’s defense claimed that the victim had initiated the sexual encounter and that everything that followed was consensual. However, the High Court rejected this argument, convicting him on all counts.

Sentencing will take place at a later date.

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Location: Singapore

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