S'pore girl, then 10, sexually assaulted by mom's boyfriend, 53, tells mom but she doesn't believe her

A 53-year-old man in Singapore was sentenced to 24 years' jail on Feb. 20 after he repeatedly sexually assaulted his girlfriend's daughter.

According to The Straits Times (ST), the offences took place between February 2021 and February 2022 when the girl was around 10 or 11 years old.

The man, who is stateless but was born in Singapore, cannot be named due to a court-imposed gag order to protect the girl's identity.

Molested girl while she was asleep, performed sex acts with her in van

The man had sexually assaulted the girl inside a van and while living with his girlfriend's family, including her son, in a one-room rental flat.

The girl, along with her younger brother, shared a mattress in the living room while the man and his girlfriend slept in the bedroom, reported ST.

In February 2021, the girl woke up to the man molesting her under her clothes while he sat on the edge of her mattress.

Further incidents occurred in a van used by the couple for work at cemeteries, when the girl and her brother would accompany them.

On one occasion, he performed sex acts on her and made her perform a sex act on him in the van.

Mother did not believe the girl

In December 2021, the girl told her mother about the abuse.

However, she did not believe her daughter and denied that he had assaulted the girl.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Tay Jia En noted that the girl "plucked up the courage to disclose the man's acts but felt betrayed when her mother chose to believe the man rather than her own daughter".

The man had also continued his assaults even after being confronted by the mother.

In February 2022, the girl broke down and told her older half-sister about the incidents. The girl's father then lodged a police report.

The man was arrested on Feb. 4, 2022.

Man did not admit to crimes throughout trial

He was later charged with four counts of sexual assault by penetration, two counts of outrage of modesty and one count of sexual exploitation of a child, according to ST.

The man claimed during the trial that he had not moved into the woman's flat until April 2021, and argued he had no opportunity to commit the acts in the van.

Justice Aidan Xu dismissed these claims, citing "material inconsistencies" between his testimony and his recorded statements to police.

In contrast, the judge found the victim's testimony to be "clear, detailed and sufficient to convict the man."

The man was found guilty on Jan. 19, 2026 and was sentenced to 24 years' jail on Feb. 20.

He cannot be caned as he is above 50 years old.

While Tay sought an additional year of imprisonment to compensate for the 24 strokes of the cane he would have otherwise received, Justice ruled that it was "not necessary" to impose additional jail time in lieu of caning.

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