Man in S'pore, 51, pleads guilty to sexually assaulting his 2 nieces, both below 12

A man in Singapore, 51, has pleaded guilty in court on Apr. 23 to sexually assaulting his two nieces, who are sisters, on separate occasions.

During the time of the offences, the older victim was 10 to 11 years old, while the younger victim was between eight and nine years of age.

The 51-year-old cannot be named due to a gag order protecting the identities of the victims.

He faced a total of seven charges of outrage of modesty.

Of these, five pertain to the older victim and two to the younger victim.

He pleaded guilty to three of them, with the remaining charge to be taken into consideration during sentencing.

According to the prosecution, the man had sexually assaulted the older victim on three occasions, and the younger victim on two.

Background to the case

Court documents obtained by Mothership reveal that the man is married with three daughters.

The victims’ family and the man's family are said to have met up regularly and celebrated special occasions together.

The victims, who were close to their cousins (the man's daughters), would also sleep over at the man's house from time to time.

Case details

The man molested the older victim on two separate occasions sometime between November to December 2018.

Laying out the facts of the case, Deputy Public Prosecutor Wong Shiau Yin stated that on the first occasion, the older victim went over to the man's house alone to borrow one of her cousins' laptops.

She was lying on her stomach on the bed in the master bedroom and using the man's handphone when he suddenly went on top of her and rubbed his private part against her over clothing.

The older victim had brushed the incident off at the time, as she did not understand what he was doing then.

On the second occasion, she went over to the man's house alone again.

She went to the master bedroom to lie down as she was feeling tired. She was lying face up when the man suddenly went on top of her and kissed her forcefully.

She tried to close her mouth, but he persisted.

As he kissed her, he took her hands and wrapped them around his neck.

The man then put his hand underneath the older victim's top and bra to touch and squeeze her chest.

He also sexually assaulted her using his finger.

The older victim was said to have felt "scared and afraid" during the incident and began to cry.

In a separate incident between January and June 2018, the man also molested the younger victim.

She was alone in the master bedroom in the man's house when he suddenly started to kiss her forcefully.

He was said to have "only stopped after a while," and the incident left the younger victim “confused and afraid”.

Court documents stated that the victims did not consent to any of the sexual acts.

In September of the same year, the man sent a series of inappropriate messages to the younger victim through Facebook Messenger.

Some of the messages read:

• "That night hug you smell your hair feel good";
• "Wow… received so many love and hug from you make me feel good"; and
• "Think you be my gf better"

The victim's mother found out about the messages and confronted the man's wife about them.

How the case came to light

During a sleepover with two of her cousins and her younger sister at the man's house sometime in December 2019, the older victim told them what the man had done to her.

Upon hearing what her sister revealed, the younger victim also shared that the man had kissed her.

The two sisters were unaware of what the man had done to the other before that day.

The victims disclosed the abuse to their parents a few days or weeks later.

Despite fears that coming forward would strain ties between the two families, they decided to speak up.

Their parents confronted the man, who denied the allegations.

The matter resurfaced in mid-2021, when the older victim informed her form teacher that she had been inappropriately touched by the man.

The teacher escalated the matter to school management, and during a subsequent meeting, staff advised the victims' parents to file a police report.

The victims' mother lodged a police report on Aug 26, 2021.

Psychological impact

The older victim attended counselling sessions at her school following her report.

Her school counsellor noted that she would break down when recalling the incidents or when she encountered a male teacher who resembled the man.

The older victim further shared that she had suicidal thoughts about three to four years ago following the sexual abuse, and also experienced nightmares about the man.

A report by Dr Celine Wong, a Senior Consultant at National University Hospital, was tendered by the prosecution.

According to the report, the older victim was seen in April 2022 and presented with multiple conditions, including suicidal ideation, and had attempted to take her own life through a drug overdose.

She struggled with low mood, distractibility and emotional dysregulation, and was treated with medication and group psychotherapy.

She was diagnosed with mixed depression and anxiety, an eating disorder, and borderline personality disorder traits.

Sentencing and bail

In court, the man's lawyer requested that sentencing be adjourned to Jun. 30 to allow him to spend time with his daughters during the school holidays, which the judge granted.

The prosecution also sought an increase in bail following the man's conviction – he is currently out on bail of S$80,000.

The defence opposed the application, arguing that the amount was already substantial and that the man posed no flight risk, adding that the family could not afford additional bail.

The judge agreed and dismissed the prosecution's application.

If convicted of sexual assault by penetration, one may be jailed for up to 20 years and fined or caned.

If convicted of outrage of modesty against any person below the age of 14, one may face a prison term which may extend to five years, a fine, caning, or any combination of such punishments.

Top photo from Canva