Singapore jails man for raping former schoolmate after confessing feelings for her

He pleaded guilty to one count of rape, with other charges including sexual assault taken into consideration.

He cannot be named as it might lead to the identification of the victim, who was 20 at the time of the rape.

The court heard that the offender and the victim were schoolmates at a tertiary education institution and their group of mutual friends included the offender’s then-girlfriend.

After graduating, the offender and the victim both became hairdressers.

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On November 24, 2021, the offender was home with his one-year-old daughter, whom he fathered with his girlfriend from school.

He invited the victim to lunch. The victim declined at first, as she had plans.

However, the offender asked the victim to meet him and his daughter, offering to pay for transport or to buy her a meal and assuring her that his girlfriend would not mind.

The victim relented, and the offender told his friend – whose flat he was staying at – that he had invited a female friend over to discuss her problems.

When the victim went over, they talked about hairdressing before entering the offender’s room to continue their chat.

During their conversation, the offender confessed to the victim that he had liked her since they were in school, adding that it was unfortunate that he was already in a relationship.

The victim did not know how to respond and simply said: “Oh, OK.”

This was followed by a short period of silence, the prosecution said.

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The offender then kissed her without warning.

Shocked, the victim told him not to do that as he was already in a relationship and had a daughter.

However, the offender ignored her and raped her.

The victim later lodged a police report.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Selene Yap asked for at least eight years’ jail and six strokes of the cane.

She said the offender had not used protection, which significantly increased the risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

The victim had trusted the offender as a friend, but he ignored her repeated pleas for him to stop, said Yap.

Defence lawyer Wasiur Rehman asked for six to seven years’ jail and six strokes of the cane.

He said his client was “caught up in the moment” and “driven by intense emotions brought from his confession”.

He said his client was always punctual for all meetings with the investigating officer and replied the officer’s calls and messages promptly.

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“I will just say that my client is regretful and remorseful. He regrets … the wrong he has done,” said the lawyer.

“Now reflecting on his actions, he promises to be a better person. He just wants to go back to his family … and start over a new leaf.”

The prosecutor said the offender “never admitted” to the offence, first denying the rape.

“It was only subsequently that he admitted there was such a penetration and that it was consensual,” said Yap.

Responding to a point made in the mitigation plea that the offender was a “victim of a traumatic event”, Yap said: “I struggle to see what’s the mitigating value in that. If anything, he should have been well aware of the harm his actions could’ve inflicted on the victim, him being a victim himself.”

As for the “immense emotional burden” on the offender’s mother cited by the defence, Yap said there was no evidence that this was “exceptionally more than what would ordinarily happen when an offender is sentenced to imprisonment”.

In sentencing, Justice Mohan Ramamirtha Subbaraman said the offence of rape is the gravest of sexual offences.

While he considered the man’s early plea of guilt and remorse, he said he did not consider that any of the allegedly mitigating factors raised by the defence were relevant or supported by any evidence.