SINGAPORE - A 34-year-old woman who had trouble getting a taxi at 5am got into the car of a stranger who offered to drive her further up the road.
But she claimed the "good Samaritan" raped and robbed her before kicking her out of his car after he had his way with her.
On Monday, 24-year-old storeman Haliffie Mamat stood trial in the High Court for raping the woman in his Proton Savvy along Kallang Bahru on May 4, 2013, and robbing her of her brand-name handbag and the items inside. He denies raping her and disputes the contents of her bag.
The prosecution has lined up 40 witnesses to prove its case against Haliffie in a trial scheduled for eight days.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Sellakumaran told the court that the victim, who cannot be named under a gag order, waited for about an hour along River Valley Road when Haliffie stopped his car and offered to drive her somewhere else where it was supposedly easier to get a taxi.
After she got into the front passenger seat, Haliffie offered to send her home. She dozed off in the car and when she woke up, the car had stopped.
The DPP said the evidence will show that Haliffie stopped the woman from alighting, threw her handbag to the backseat and raped her after a struggle.
After the rape, Haliffie drove off for a short distance, stopped the car, opened the door on her side and kicked her out to the road. He then drove off with her bag.
The stranded woman got into a taxi and told the cabby that she had been raped.
The cabby and a friend he subsequently picked up nearby will testify about that the woman had asked to go to the police station, said the DPP. Police officers on duty at the Geylang Neighbourhood Police Centre will also testify that the woman could not walk properly and was visibly injured when she told them she had been raped.
Haliffie was nabbed when he sold a mobile phone that was in her bag.
The prosecution will also lead medical evidence on her injuries and that she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of her ordeal.
