A 53-year-old cleaner got a jail term of eight years and 38 weeks on Tuesday, January 30, for molesting his stepdaughter several times over a two-year period. The man pleaded guilty to five charges of outrage of modesty of the minor girl.
The stepdaughter was 11-year-old when the first incident took place, which was followed by about ten similar occurrences. These ten charges were considered during the man's sentencing by the State Courts.
The court had previously heard that the stepfather would ask the minor for sex on at least three occasions when she asked permission to go to the playground. The identity of the convict and the victim has been withheld due to a gag order.
The offenses were committed in a one-room flat where the man resides. He would assault her whenever they were alone and the victim allegedly kept quiet in shock and fear that her mother will not believe her.
The victim's mother got married to the man in 2014, after which she moved into his rental flat with her daughter. The girl was living with her grandmother and aunt before that.
The molestation cases began four months after the marriage, for the first time in 2015. When the 11-year-old asked her stepfather to let her go to the playground, he said she will only be allowed to play if she had sex with him. However, the daughter did not concede and remained at home.
According to reports, the man then grabbed her from behind, kissed her on the cheek and fondled her inappropriately. Incidents like this happened several times between January 2015 and June 2016, becoming more severe when the culprit was on medical leave in 2016.
Between July and August 2016, the man stripped his stepdaughter from the waist down and rubbed his private parts on her body while she was watching television. Even though she cried out in pain and fear, he continued with his actions.
During a sex education class in January 2017, the girl told her classmate about her ordeal, which was then reported to a teacher. The teacher went to the Ministry of Social Affairs for assistance.
Deputy Public Prosecutor, in this case, Chee Ee Ling asked for a nine-year jail term for the molester and an additional 30 weeks in jail as he cannot be caned due to his age.
After the accused pleaded guilty and the victim was spared from giving a statement in court, District Judge Chay Yuen Fatt decided on a jail sentence of eight years and 38 weeks. He noted that the sentence should be strict enough to deter such offenders in the future.
The maximum sentence could have been five years in jail and fine for each charge of molestation.
