4 boys & 2 girls, aged 13-17, assaulted boy, 17, in Buona Vista as they thought he'd committed rape, but realised he didn't & apologised to him

Six youths in Singapore assaulted a fellow youth after they thought a female acquaintance had been raped.

Taking matters into their own hands, they confronted and assaulted the victim, whom they believed had committed the rape, only to realise after the attack that they had misinterpreted the issue.

They then apologised to the victim when they realised the rape never occurred.

One of the youth attackers, the main accused, was then convicted of rioting while armed with a deadly weapon.

What happened

The main accused, a 16-year-old male, carried out the attack on the 17-year-old male with five other youths along the rail corridor near Buona Vista MRT station on Sep. 1, 2024.

The five co-accused persons are aged 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17.

The group of six attackers had mistakenly thought that the victim had raped a 17-year-old female friend, who is a Chinese national.

The accused and co-accused persons are all Singaporeans.

The convicted teenager cannot be named due to a gag order.

What happened

According to court documents, the attack occurred after the 17-year-old female friend confided in a 16-year-old boy in the group about her relationship issues.

The boy she told her problems to misinterpreted the situation and thought that the girl had been raped.

Boy contacted another boy

This boy then contacted another boy and asked him to confront and assault the victim.

This boy, who was told to confront and assault the victim, did not eventually participate in the attack as he was tired.

Conversation overheard

However, the conversation between them was on loudspeaker and overhead by two other boys and they were angered.

These two boys, aged 13 and 14, decided to join the attack.

Told another boy and girl

These two boys were at MacPherson estate hanging out with one boy and one girl, and mentioned the alleged rape and the intention to attack the person supposedly responsible for it.

The boy, who was the main accused, and the girl, aged 15, who were told about what allegedly happened, then decided to join the attack, despite not knowing the 16-year-old boy whom the 17-year-old girl had confided in about her relationship problems.

Took a booked ride to location

The group of four then took a private hire vehicle to the incident location.

The girl, who was believed to have been raped, arranged to meet the victim at Buona Vista MRT station at about 11pm.

The accused, along with the two boys, aged 13 and 14, as well as the girl, aged 15, arrived at Buona Vista MRT station.

At the MRT station was the girl who was allegedly raped and the boy she confided in, as well as the victim.

The group were deemed to have committed the offence of an unlawful assembly as they were gathered together and had the common object of voluntarily causing hurt to the victim.

Led victim to more secluded area

They led the victim to a more secluded location at the rail corridor near the MRT station.

At about 11:20pm, the group arrived at the incident location, and surrounded the victim.

Youngest boys started attack

The two youngest boys, aged 13 and 14, together with the main accused, started kicking and punching the victim on his chest and body, causing the victim to fall to the ground.

The girl, who was thought to have been raped, and the boy she confided in, then joined in the assault.

Shaved victim's eyebrows

While the victim was on the ground and being assaulted, the accused proceeded to shave off the victim’s eyebrows.

Main accused brandished knife

At this point, the main accused brandished a deadly weapon, a flick knife with a 9cm blade, and pointed it at the victim and asked whether the victim wanted to “try the knife”.

The assault lasted for about three minutes before the group made the victim perform humiliating acts, such as licking the ground and the accused's feet.

Assault recorded

The entire episode from the time the victim fell to the ground was recorded by the 15-year-old girl in the group using the 14-year-old boy's handphone.

Learnt that the rape never occurred

The accused and the five co-accused persons then spoke to the victim about the alleged rape and realised that it was a misunderstanding.

They learned that no rape had occurred.

Apologised to victim

They then apologised to the victim for the assault and left.

The next day, the victim sought medical treatment at the National University Hospital.

The victim suffered several injuries, including lacerations on his left cheek, multiple bruises on his back and abrasions on his knee and elbow.

He lodged a police report a day after the attack.

To be sentenced

The court on Jun. 9 called for a report to determine if the accused was suitable for reformative training.

Young offenders who undergo reformative training are placed in a centre with a strict regimen that can include foot drills and counselling.

Top photos via court document & Google Maps