Jail and caning for man who raped ex-girlfriend, saying he wanted to impregnate and marry her

SINGAPORE: A man who raped his ex-girlfriend and said he wanted to get her pregnant so she would have to marry him was sentenced to 10-and-a-half years' jail and six strokes of the cane on Monday (Nov 8).

The 28-year-old man, who cannot be named to protect the victim's identity, had also threatened the woman with a knife and interrogated her on her sexual history with her new boyfriend.

He pleaded guilty last month to one count of rape, with five other charges including a second count of rape and aggravated sexual assault taken into consideration.

Justice Philip Jeyaretnam on Monday accepted that the offender has shown remorse and sought to take responsibility by turning himself in and confessing immediately to the police.

"I believe it is not too late for you to change," he said, adding that the offender was "fortunate to have the love and support" of his family, who have been in court to support him.

However, the judge said his journey would not be an easy one and would have to begin with understanding the trauma he inflicted on the victim, instead of concluding easily that she has forgiven him.

The offender met the victim in secondary school and began dating her when he was 16 and she was 14. He impregnated her twice - first when she was 14, and when she was 23, and she had an abortion on both occasions.

The victim broke up with the offender in February 2019 when she was 24, after finding out that he had cheated on her again.

The offender kept pursuing the victim despite her attempts to block his advances, and finally saw her in person in late February 2019, after waiting for her at her block.

They tussled physically over her phone, with the offender striking her forearm and punching her motorcycle helmet, before breaking down in tears at the sight of a ring on her finger.

Feeling sorry for him, the victim agreed to go to his flat to talk about their future. In the flat, the man asked the victim if she had sex with another man, before placing the blade of a bread knife against her neck and interrogating her on her sex partners.

After resisting his questions multiple times, the victim finally said she had engaged in sexual intercourse with her new boyfriend, and was met with an onslaught of more questions about the intercourse.

The offender then slid the knife across the victim's thigh before raping her twice and saying he wanted her to get pregnant so she would have no choice but to marry him.

She did not eventually become pregnant.

She took a Grab car home, calling her boyfriend on the way to tell him what happened, after the offender smashed her phone screen with his knife.

The offender later sent messages to the victim's best friend saying he was sorry and wanted to surrender to the police, and was arrested that same morning.

The prosecutor had sought 13 years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane, saying it was "unspeakable" to want to make the victim "bear in her womb the fruit of rape".

Defence lawyer Kyle Sim asked for six years' jail and six strokes of the cane instead, arguing that the victim has purportedly forgiven the offender. He showed the court Instagram stories posted by the victim expressing support and even love for the offender.

JUDGE REJECTS DEFENCE'S ARGUMENT ON FORGIVENESS

The judge on Monday rejected the defence counsel's argument that the victim's many social media posts on the offender showed that she has forgiven him.

He said the posts showed only that the victim continues to have mixed feelings about the offender.

"This is understandable because you had an almost decade-long relationship with her, during which I have no doubt there were many good times too," said Justice Jeyaretnam. 

"Her making these posts is not inconsistent with her continuing to suffer trauma from her rape, and indeed may just be part of that process of trying to work through that trauma."

He added that even if the victim finds it in her heart to forgive the offender, the harm he caused her is not diminished.

The sentence will be backdated to when the offender was first remanded in February 2019.