Jail for man who was first of four brothers to start sexually abusing 8-year-old sister

SINGAPORE: A man who was the first among four brothers to start sexually abusing their younger sister was on Tuesday (May 21) sentenced to 18 years in jail and 24 strokes of the cane.

Justice Mavis Chionh decided on a longer jail term than the 16 years proposed by the prosecution and defence, which she said was not commensurate with his crime.

The man, now 22, is the second-oldest of the four brothers. The assailants cannot be named in order to protect the identity of the victim.

He pleaded guilty to three charges of aggravated rape, which carries a minimum penalty of eight years in jail and 12 strokes of the cane.

Another 16 charges of aggravated rape and aggravated sexual assault were considered in sentencing.

The girl was sexually abused by her four brothers from 2018 to 2022, when she was eight to 12 years old.

The brother convicted on Tuesday was the first to start sexually abusing her in 2018. His last assault on her happened only a week before he was arrested in February 2022.

He said he would rather sexually abuse his sister than meet his urges with a girlfriend due to his past experience of being “heartbroken”, said Deputy Public Prosecutor M Kayal Pillay.

The man, who was 16 to 20 at the time of the offences, also deliberately chose to assault the victim over her two younger sisters because of her body, said the prosecutor.

The family of four brothers and three sisters lived with their parents. The siblings slept in separate boys’ and girls’ rooms, while their parents slept in the master bedroom.

The man assaulted his sister in all three bedrooms. On some occasions he did so even when the two other sisters were asleep beside her.

The victim physically resisted his advances and he knew that she did not consent to the sexual activity, the prosecutor said.

The abuse came to light when the victim entered secondary school and found the courage to tell school staff what happened.

She subsequently showed trauma symptoms such as hypervigilance and frequent strong feelings of disgust, fear and sadness.

She was referred for trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy and showed significant improvement after her therapy sessions.

This is the last brother to be convicted in the case. The oldest brother was sentenced on Monday, and the two youngest brothers are awaiting reports on their suitability for reformative training.

Arguing for a sentence of 16 years’ jail and 24 strokes of the cane, Ms Pillay said that the offender admitted he would have continued the sexual abuse if it had not been reported.

“The accused’s perverse acts have left a stain on the victim’s tender years when she should have been concerned with no more than her school assignments and peer-aged friendships,” said the prosecution.

“Instead, she is left with a quagmire of guilt and trauma to navigate.”

In mitigation, defence lawyer Stephania Wong of Rajah & Tann read out an extract of a letter from her client, in which he apologised to his family and the victim.

The man said he had “ruined” the victim’s life and “traumatised” her when he was “supposed to take care of her”. He hoped for a chance to apologise in person and promised to be “more responsible”.

Ms Wong also pointed to the offender’s young age of 16 to 20 during the abuse.

She argued that he was exposed to inappropriate sexualised behaviour and pornographic material as a teen and did not receive proper guidance from an adult, which contributed to his offences.

But Justice Chionh said the sentence proposed by both the prosecution and defence was not enough to reflect the overall criminality of the man’s conduct, and not in line with past cases.

She said that while he faced fewer charges than his oldest brother – who had 42 charges and was sentenced to 20 years’ jail and caning – the bulk of his offences involved “actual consummation” of rape.

She highlighted the man’s abuse of the trust and responsibility placed in him as the victim’s older brother, and the extended period of five years during which he “sexually terrorised” her.

She also noted the severe harm the victim suffered, including her current separation from her younger sisters and parents “through no fault of her own”.

Justice Chionh said the offender would still be quite young when his sentence was completed, and expressed hope he would rehabilitate himself as he had said he wanted to.

Reiterating her call for the victim to take courage and forge ahead, she added that the fact that the girl’s psychologist said she had shown improvement was a testament to her fortitude.

The judge also expressed hope that the girl’s family would rally around to show her love, support and encouragement.