Man gets jail for sexually abusing 11-year-old step-granddaughter who lived with him
After finding out about the abuse, the girl’s stepfather confronted his father, but he denied doing anything of a sexual nature.
A view of the Supreme Court in Singapore. (Photo: CNA/Syamil Sapari)
New: You can now listen to articles.
This audio is generated by an AI tool.
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
SINGAPORE: A man began sexually abusing his son’s stepdaughter after a temporary sleeping arrangement during the COVID-19 pandemic left them sharing a bedroom for about a week.
The victim, who was 11 to 12 years old at the time, initially kept the abuse a secret because she felt ashamed of herself.
The 68-year-old man was sentenced to 11 years and six months’ jail on Friday (Jul 31) for molesting and sexually abusing her. He cannot be named to protect the victim’s identity.
He pleaded guilty to eight charges – five for molesting a child under 14 years old in a close relationship with him, one for sexual assault involving penetration and two for committing an indecent act with a child.
He was sentenced on two molest charges and the sexual assault charge, with the rest of the offences taken into consideration.
After entering secondary school in 2022, the victim told her close friends about the sexual assault and they advised her to lodge a police report. But she decided against it because she did not want her parents to worry.
A few days later, a classmate who was dating the victim’s brother looked through her phone and saw the related messages. She then told her boyfriend about the abuse, and he informed their parents.
After she related the incidents to her parents, the girl’s stepfather confronted his father. But the court heard that her abuser denied doing anything of a sexual nature, claiming that he had only hugged her.
After his son threatened to call the police, the offender confessed that he had “done wrong”. His son also told him to leave the flat and the man moved out two days later.
Again, the girl decided not to lodge a police report because she did not want to make her stepfather sad. A Child Protection Services officer eventually convinced her to do so in 2024.
Deputy Public Prosecutors Goh Yong Ngee and Ariel Tan asked for 11 years’ to 12 years and six months’ jail for the man, as well as an additional one year in prison in lieu of caning. He cannot be caned since he is above 50 years old.
The victim was so traumatised by the offences that she took to self-harm, became afraid of men and had difficulties trusting others, the prosecution said.
They also highlighted her young age and their close relationship as aggravating factors in this case.
Citing a high degree of abuse of trust, the prosecution said that as her step-grandfather, the man was a figure of authority who was in close physical proximity with his victim since they lived together.
This magnifies the degree of trust that was placed in him to look after her, the court heard.
“However, instead of caring for her, the accused abused his position and the trust reposed in him by engaging in highly intrusive sexual acts with the victim,” the prosecution said.
MULTIPLE INCIDENTS OF SEXUAL ABUSE
In 2021, when the girl was between 11 and 12 years old, she lived in a flat with her parents, her three siblings, a domestic helper and the offender.
The offender originally shared a bedroom with her brothers. When their family’s domestic helper fell ill with COVID-19, she moved from their room to share one with the offender and her two brothers for about a week.
On the day he sexually assaulted her for the first time, she was awake and fidgeting in bed when her step-grandfather woke up to use the toilet.
When asked why she was not asleep, she replied that something was troubling her. The man told her to sleep with him on his bed and she complied.
While she was lying next to him, he passed her his mobile phone and she played games on it. Knowing that she did not consent, he molested her multiple times and performed sex acts on her.
After this incident, the girl moved back to her original bedroom, but the man sexually assaulted her again later that year, the court heard.
In another incident after her 12th birthday, he again called her into his bedroom to molest her. He also exposed himself and forced her to touch him, before telling the victim not to tell anyone about what had happened.
As a result of the repeated sexual assaults, the girl felt sad, fearful, disgusted and angry, the court heard.
She faced recurring thoughts about the abuse she had been through and suffered from insomnia and a loss of appetite. She also harboured suicidal thoughts and tried to harm herself on at least two occasions.
She also became afraid of men, and had difficulties trusting others and focusing during lessons in school, the court heard.
Source: CNA/hw
Sign up for our newsletters
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
About The Author
