Hairdresser, 38, will be 1st Japanese national caned in S'pore for rape, sexual assault

A Japanese hairstylist in Singapore brought an intoxicated woman to his home and sexually assaulted her.

Kita Ikko, a 38-year-old Japanese national, also filmed himself assaulting the victim while she was unconscious and also later when she was conscious and crying out for help.

His assault lasted over 40 minutes.

He later sent the videos to his friend to say that the "sex was good".

Found guilty, sentenced to jail and caning

Kita pleaded guilty to one charge each of rape, sexual assault by penetration and making an obscene film.

Four other charges were also taken into consideration.

He was ultimately sentenced to 17-and-a-half years in jail and 20 strokes of the cane on Jul. 1, 2024.

Met the intoxicated victim

On Dec. 29, 2019, the victim, 20, met with some friends for drinks before going to two clubs with a friend, also 20, at Clarke Quay.

At around 3:20 am on Dec. 30, the pair was approached by Kita and his friend, a 23-year-old man.

Although they did not know each other, Kita hugged the intoxicated victim.

The victim's friend told the two men to leave them alone and the girls walked away. However, the men approached them again and they continued walking together.

The victim later could not stand by herself, and was supported by her friend and Kita.

Kita and the victim later parted ways with their respective friends.

Brought the victim home

Kita took the victim to his house with a taxi, arriving at about 3:44am. She was unable to stand up on her own and Kita brought her up to his apartment.

While in the lift and his apartment, he committed several acts of sexual assault, some of which were filmed on his phone.

At one point, after Kita had brought the woman to his bedroom, she regained consciousness and tried to resist. However, he restrained her and continued his assault.

He then committed multiple acts of rape before letting her go.

The victim left the apartment and called her friend, who helped to call for a taxi.

They lodged a police report later in the day.

Arrested that same day

Kita was arrested for rape on the same day at 5:30 pm and was released on bail the next day.

He was subsequently charged in court on May. 17, 2023 and has been in remand since.

The police seized his phone and found two videos of the assault.

Investigations later revealed that Kita had sent the videos to his friend shortly after the assault and said the "sex was good".

Jailed and caned

The prosecution sought 18 years' jail and 20 strokes of the cane for Kita.

They noted that Kita persisted in sexually assaulting her despite the victim screaming, crying and repeatedly pleading with him to stop.

"Accounting is due for the irreparable harm the accused has caused the victim, who continues to grapple with post-traumatic stress symptoms, years after the ordeal," the prosecutor stated.

The victim also blamed herself for what happened and suffered a diminished self-worth.

The victim, who was then a first-year undergraduate, was left "indelibly scarred" and later developed features of post-traumatic stress disorder, according to court documents.

According to CNA, Kita's lawyers sought a lighter sentence of 11 to 11-and-a-half years' jail and eight strokes of the cane, saying their client "flirted" with the victim and this was his first brush with the law in Singapore and Japan, where he lived previously.

The lawyers clarified that Kita accepted the victim was not able to give consent to sex upon arriving there.

Justice Aedit Abdullah addressed the victim directly, CNA reported.

"Despite the efforts of your counsel, I have not been persuaded to impose a total sentence as light as he has argued for," he said.

He added the assault was "brutal and cruel" and said the victim was "vulnerable" and "incapable of looking after herself," CNA reported.

He took into account Kita's guilty plea and the fact there was "a considerable delay in proceedings" and did not give as high a sentence as the prosecution asked for.

According to the Japanese embassy in Singapore, Kita will be the first Japanese national to be caned in Singapore, reported BBC News.

Top photo from Canva