Warning: This report has references to suicide
SINGAPORE: A 73-year-old man was sentenced to 13-and-a-half years' jail on Monday (Oct 19) for raping and molesting his biological daughter, who was between 10 and 13 years old at the time.
The teenager later told a friend that her father had been sexually assaulting her and that she wanted to kill herself.
The case was flagged to the Child Protective Service and a police report was lodged.
The elderly Singaporean man, who listened to court proceedings via a court interpreter, pleaded guilty to four charges including aggravated statutory rape, aggravated molestation and sexual exploitation of a child.
Another six charges were taken into consideration.
THE CASE
The offender is the biological father of the victim.
A gag order protecting the victim, who is now 15, prevents publication of anything that could identify her.
This extends to her father's name.
At all times, the victim lived in a flat with her father.
No mention of her mother was made in the statement of facts, but the offender's lawyer confirmed with CNA that the victim's mother lived with them and is a foreigner.
Sometime between 2021 and 2022, the man watched pornography on a television set within the sight of his daughter who was in the same room.
The man approached his daughter, who was lying on a mattress, and made her perform a sex act on him.
He then committed rape against his daughter, who was 10 to 12 years old and in primary school.
After this, he told the girl not to tell anyone what he had done, or he would be sent to prison and she would never be able to see him again.
The victim complied as she was worried about this prospect.
Her father sexually abused her again in 2023, when she was 12 to 13 years old.
She was unable to react and was afraid of him as he was stronger than her.
Sometime between May 2024 and October 2024, the man molested his daughter in her room and performed a sex act on her.
The girl felt disgusted but did not react as she feared getting scolded.
Her father also made her perform an indecent act on him sometime between July 2024 and August 2024.
VICTIM DISCLOSES ACTS
In October 2024, the girl disclosed to a friend that her father had been sexually assaulting her since 2021.
She said she wanted to kill herself.
Her friend told a teacher and the school referred the matter to the Child Protective Service.
A representative from the service lodged a police report and the man was arrested the next day.
Deputy Public Prosecutors Daphne Lim and Clara Low sought 14-and-a-half years to 16 years' jail for the man.
Ms Lim said the prosecution had already moderated the sentences so the overall jail term would not be crushing.
She added that mature age in and of itself was not a mitigating factor.
"In fact, despite his age and maturity, the accused systematically exploited and abused his daughter. That goes to the culpability of the accused," said Ms Lim.
Defence lawyer Joseph Yoong from Dominion law firm proposed 11-and-a-half to 12-and-a-half years' jail instead.
He told CNA after the hearing that his client was a taxi driver who often returned home late.
He is still married to his wife, who is now a Singapore permanent resident.
Justice Dedar Singh Gill in sentencing referred to the young age of the victim and the grave abuse of trust by the offender.
The punishment for rape against a minor is a jail term of between eight and 20 years and at least 12 strokes of the cane.
Because the man was in a close relationship with the victim, he faced up to double these penalties.
The man cannot be caned as he is above the age of 50.