S'pore man, 28, pays 3 girls, aged 13, up to S$500 for sex, gets 25.5 years' jail, 24 strokes of cane

A 28-year-old man has been sentenced to 25.5 years' jail and 24 strokes of the cane for raping three underage girls after offering to pay them for sex.

He was sentenced on Jul. 27.

According to The Straits Times, Edmund Tan Shi Hui had met the three girls online.

He engaged in multiple penetrative sexual acts with them on eight separate occasions over more than a year, and offered them up to S$500 each time.

Tan faced a total of 16 charges, comprising statutory rape, sexual assault by penetration, and sexual penetration of a minor below the age of 16.

He pleaded guilty to six charges of statutory rape committed between March 2022 and July 2023, and the other 10 charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.

Had sex at Kovan MRT station

Court documents seen by Mothership revealed that Tan was between the ages of 24 and 25 at the time of the offences.

All three victims were aged 13 then.

Sometime before Mar. 4, 2022, the first victim had posted an advertisement on a Telegram group chat stating that she was 16 to 18 years old, and was offering her services in exchange for S$200 to S$300.

Tan saw the advertisement and sent her a private message.

They agreed to meet on Mar. 4, 2022, and that Tan would pay the victim S$100.

That day, after the victim finished school, the two had sex at a handicap toilet in Kovan MRT station.

He later told her that he knew she was younger than her declared age and that he would not report her as he would get into worse trouble than she would.

After the incident, Tan texted her to say that he regretted giving her so much money and asked for a video call with her.

Initially, the first victim refused out of fear that the video would be leaked.

However, she subsequently agreed after Tan promised that he would not record the video and would pay her S$500.

She took the video call in her school's toilet, during which she performed sexual acts.

After the call, however, the first victim realised that Tan had blocked her.

She later chanced upon him on Omegle, an online video-conferencing platform, and met him again for paid sex on Dec. 26, 2022, and Apr. 18, 2023.

Met up with second victim at his house

Tan met the second victim via Omegle sometime before Sep. 8, 2022.

He asked her to meet up for sexual acts, and she agreed to do so for S$400.

On Sep. 8, 2022, the two met up at his flat.

He had booked a private-hire car for her journey from her house to his unit, and another for her return home.

He continued to text her and request for more sexual acts in exchange for cash after that incident.

Some 10 days later, on Sep. 18, 2022, Tan paid her S$500 after they had sex at a handicap toilet in Punggol.

After this incident, the second victim lied to him, saying she was 14 years old.

They met again at his flat on Dec. 15, 2022.

Had sex at staircase landing

Similarly, Tan and the third victim met on Omegle on Jul. 7, 2023.

They later moved their conversation to Telegram, and she agreed to have paid sex with him on the same day.

Later that day, Tan sent the third victim a photo of his private part and asked her to send nude pictures of herself.

She complied.

He subsequently asked her what she was busy with, to which she replied that she was 13 years old and still attending school.

That night, the two met at a bus stop near the third victim's house and engaged in sex acts at the staircase landing of a block of flats after Tan paid her S$500.

They were later interrupted by a passer-by, who asked what they were doing.

The two then moved to another staircase landing and continued.

The next day, he texted her to ask for sex again, but she said she was not free.

On Jul. 30, 2023, she texted him, stating that she had spoken to the police and told him to stop contacting her.

Tan was arrested on Aug. 4, 2023 for sexual offences committed against the third victim, and his mobile phone was seized.

Investigations later revealed that Tan had kept a detailed diary of his expenditures in relation to paid sexual acts committed with 17 girls, out of which the three victims were under 14.

Sentencing

The prosecution sought a jail term of 23.5 to 27.5 years, along with 24 strokes of the cane for Tan.

It described Tan as an "incorrigible sexual offender", noting that he had exploited the victims for "his own lustful desires" and that his offences also demonstrated predatory behaviour.

According to ST, the defence counsel called the length of the jail term "crushing", noting that Tan would be in prison for almost as long as he had been alive.

He argued that 14 years’ jail and 12 strokes of the cane were sufficient to deter Tan and others.

The lawyer also noted that the maximum jail term for commercial sex with a minor under 18 was seven years, as compared to up to 20 years for rape.

He argued that this showed that paying for sex was regarded as a less serious offence.

However, the judge rejected these arguments.

He said parliament had intended to protect minors by making paid sex with those under 18 an offence, even though non-commercial sex with those aged 16 to 18 is not otherwise an offence.