Corpun file 17111

Straits Times, Singapore, 2 December 2005

Dad from hell jailed

He gets three years' jail for molesting daughter 13, on whom he had used lighted cigarette when she was just three

By Elena Chong

ELEVEN years ago, he was jailed for two years and given six strokes of the cane for using a lighted cigarette to burn his then three-year-old daughter.

Now he will be going to jail again - for molesting her.

Yesterday, the 43-year-old jobless man was in court - to face five counts of molesting his 13-year-old daughter at their home between March 13 and 20 last year.

He pleaded guilty to three charges. Two other charges were considered during the sentencing.

A district court heard that the man and his family slept on a mattress in the hall of their one-room HDB flat. He molested his daughter while she slept with the other family members, including her two brothers, during the March school holidays last year.

Once, he lay on top and rubbed himself against her for a few minutes while she was sleeping face down. On two other occasions, he touched and squeezed her breasts while she was sleeping.

When he realised she was awake, he quickly removed his hands and pretended to look elsewhere.

She did not report the incidents immediately as she was afraid he would beat her.

When school reopened, she told her principal, who then called the police on April 6 last year.

In mitigation, the man said he had to take care of his sick wife.

He was jailed for five months for pouring hot water on his wife 12 years ago.

The prosecutor yesterday told District Judge Tan Boon Gin to take into account the accused's reprehensible act on his daughter and her age. He also said the family was 'living in fear'.

The man was sentenced to 18 months' jail and three strokes on each charge, with two jail sentences to run consecutively. The total: three years' jail and nine strokes of the cane.

The maximum penalty for each count of outrage of modesty is two years' jail or fine or caning or any two of the punishments.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Corpun file 17141

Straits Times, Singapore, 9 December 2005

Judge orders boy, 15, to be caned, then spares him

Only High Court can order 'corporal punishment' for young offenders

By Chong Chee Kin

FOR close to 30 minutes yesterday, a 15-year-old boy faced the prospect of being jailed and caned, a rare sentence for teens under 16 here.

He was jailed for 2½ years by a district judge for conspiring with two other teens and aquarium shop assistant Chua Beng Hin to kill Chua's former mistress, Ms Loy Say Lee.

For having a knife in his possession when he was caught, he was jailed an additional six months and ordered to be caned the mandatory six strokes.

But the boy was spared the cane after District Judge Aedit Abdullah, who had handed out the initial punishment of three years' jail and six strokes of the rotan, ordered him to be brought back to the dock half an hour after sentencing.

His reason?

Only the High Court has the power to sentence a young offender to 'corporal punishment'.

Although it was not specified what 'corporal punishment' meant, the judge could not rule out that it excluded caning.

In 1999, the High Court ordered three teenagers to be jailed and caned for raping a 14-year-old girl. Two of the boys were 15 years old and the other 14 at the time of the offence.

Yesterday, the district judge ended up simply jailing the teenager, who was already in trouble with the law for selling obscene VCDs in December last year, for three years.

His two co-conspirators - a 15-year-old school dropout, and Tan Hock Meng, 16 - were each placed on probation for 36 months and ordered to perform 240 hours of community service. They were also ordered to attend prison visits and talks on secret societies.

Chua, 42, had earlier been jailed for five years and ordered to be given six strokes of the cane.

The judge jailed the student after he agreed with a report that found the youth unsuitable for probation.

He also found the teen 'more culpable' than his other two friends. 'The accused's involvement was more significant than the others in the offence and the crimes he committed are serious and reprehensible,' he said.

The judge also had strong words for the other two youths whom he placed on probation.

'You have been convicted and are guilty of such a serious and reprehensible crime...I cannot understand how you could have been involved in such an offence,' he said.

Earlier, the court heard from the probation officer of the dropout how he had 'violent behaviour' and problems with 'self-restraint'. According to the youth's probation report, there was 'limited scope for rehabilitation'.

His lawyer, Mr Mark Goh, had urged the court not to jail his client, saying that prison life might expose the youth to hardened adult criminals.

Judge Aedit said he would alert the authorities to be mindful of that, and added the youth should continue treatment for his 'violent tendencies' in prison.

All three teenagers could have been jailed up to seven years and fined.

Corpun file 17149

Straits Times, Singapore, 13 December 2005

Underage sex and assault: Youth jailed

By Selina Lum

A 15-YEAR-OLD girl was assaulted by her 20-year-old boyfriend, who also threatened to kill her family, when she wanted to break up with him.

She made a police report against him two days later. During investigations, it emerged that she had had sex with him and was carrying a baby.

The girl was referred to the Singapore General Hospital on July 22 and was found to be nine weeks' pregnant. She later had an abortion.

Yesterday, her ex-boyfriend, a full-time national serviceman, was jailed for nine months and ordered to be caned six strokes.

He pleaded guilty to having sex with an underage girl, possessing an offensive weapon and causing hurt to the girl.

Another five charges of having sex with an underage girl and one charge of criminal intimidation were taken into consideration.

The couple had got to know each other on the Internet Relay Chat in January last year.

They became an item five months later and, from October, they had sex regularly at his flat.

However, on June 30 this year, the girl decided to split up with him because of his violent nature.

When the youth approached her in a reconciliation bid, she spotted him putting a knife into his right boot. She grabbed the knife and broke it.

They continued talking at the void deck of a block of flats but the youth became agitated. He head-butted the girl and gripped her throat.

He then pushed her to the floor and struck her on the head. When he forced two of his fingers into her mouth, she bit him and ran away.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.