24 years’ jail for man who sexually assaulted girlfriend’s daughter in van and at home

SINGAPORE – A 53-year-old man who sexually assaulted his girlfriend’s daughter, who was then 10 to 11 years old, was sentenced to 24 years’ jail on Feb 20.

The girl’s mother was in court with other family members and broke down in tears on hearing his sentence.

He cannot be named under a gag order imposed to protect the victim’s identity.

The sexual acts, which were committed between February 2021 and February 2022,

took place at home and in a van parked at cemeteries

.

The girl told her mother about the abuse in December 2021, but the woman chose to believe the man when he denied that he had assaulted the girl.

In sentencing, Justice Aidan Xu considered the harm caused to a very young victim and that the man had taken advantage of his relationship with the girl’s mother.

However, the judge added that it was not necessary to impose additional jail time in lieu of caning.

The man cannot be caned as he is more than 50 years old.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Tay Jia En had sought 22 to 24 years’ jail, and 12 months’ jail in lieu of the maximum 24 strokes of the cane.

The prosecutor said the man’s actions have impacted the victim’s relationship with her mother and brother.

DPP Tay noted that the victim was especially affected by her own mother’s refusal to believe her – she had 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 prosecutor added that the man had brazenly continued assaulting the victim even after he had been confronted by the victim’s mother.

The man’s lawyer, Mr Teo Choo Kee, asked for not more than 20 years’ jail, and six months’ jail in lieu of caning.

The man, who is stateless but was born in Singapore, faced four counts of sexual assault by penetration, two counts of outrage of modesty and one count of sexual exploitation of a child.

He was found guilty of all seven charges on Jan 19 following a trial that began in April 2025.

The man lived with the victim, her mother and younger brother in a one-room rental flat.

The children shared a mattress in the living room, while their mother and the man slept in the bedroom.

The victim testified that in February 2021, she woke up to the man touching her under her clothes as he sat on the edge of the mattress.

She also testified about the various occasions in a rented van when he committed sex acts on her and made her perform a sex act on him.

The couple would drive the van to cemeteries at odd hours for work, with the victim and her brother accompanying them.

The offences finally came to light after the victim broke down and told her older half-sister about the assaults.

This led the victim’s father to take her to make a police report on Feb 3, 2022.

The man was arrested and released on bail the next day.

He was not granted bail after he was charged in court on June 15, 2023.

During the trial, the man claimed that he could not have abused the girl in February 2021 because he moved in only in April that year.

He also claimed that he had no opportunity to commit the offences in the van.

In convicting the man on Jan 19, 2026, Justice Xu said the man could not be believed as there were material inconsistencies between his court testimony and his account in his video-recorded statements to the police.

On the other hand, the girl’s testimony was clear, detailed and sufficient to convict the man, said the judge.