Probation for teen who got underaged girlfriend pregnant, instigated her to bury stillborn child

SINGAPORE — An 18-year-old was on Wednesday (Feb 7) sentenced to 21 months’ supervised probation for sexually penetrating a minor and instigating the girl to conceal the birth of their stillborn child by burying its body.

The full-time national serviceman had pleaded guilty to the offences in December last year.

The court previously heard that the teenager, then aged 14, had in July 2020 sexually penetrated a girl he was dating, who was then 15.

Both teenagers cannot be named due to a court order.

In June 2021, he had instigated the girl to conceal the birth of the child by secretly burying its body in a front yard.

The location of the yard was taken out from court documents.

The pair tried to abort the foetus using methods they found online after the girl found out sometime in January 2021 that she was pregnant, court documents stated.

These included using abortion pills that the boy bought online, the victim inserting the bent edge of a clothes hanger in an attempt to pull out the foetus, as well as the boy punching and giving a knee jab to the victim's stomach, with her consent.

Their efforts failed and the girl gave birth to a stillborn son about six months into her pregnancy in June 2021.

After keeping the body for two days, she buried it in the garden of her home after her boyfriend warned her that it was risky to keep it.

They ended their relationship in March 2022.

The offences came to light after the girl’s mother noticed that she was exceptionally quiet and asked her about it and the girl later confessed.

TODAY understands that the girl has been given a conditional warning for her role in the case.

On Wednesday, the 18-year-old appeared in court with a shaved head and wearing a disposable mask.

He did not address the court except to only reply in affirmative when the judge read to him the probation conditions and asked him if he was ready to abide by them.

The conditions include remaining indoors from 10pm to 6am whenever he is out of camp, performing 100 hours of community service, and having his internet-enabled devices monitored and subjected to checks by his parents and probation officer.

Deputy Principal District Judge Kessler Soh briefly addressed the teenager's parents, asking them to support and give encouragement to their son during the probation period.

The parents have to execute a S$5,000 bond to ensure their son’s good behaviour during the probation period.

“Make sure you learn from this,” the judge said, addressing the teenager.

Abetting the concealment of a child’s birth attracts a jail term of up to two years or a fine, or both.

If convicted of sexually penetrating a minor, a person can be jailed for up to 20 years, fined or caned.