In Singapore, brother who raped and sexually abused sister from age five gets 18 years in prison
SINGAPORE, May 19 — A 26-year-old Singaporean man was sentenced to 18 years in jail and 24 strokes of the cane on Monday for sexually abusing his younger sister over a period of seven years.
The abuse began in 2012 when the offender was 12 years old and his sister was just five or six, and escalated over time into more serious offences.
The offender pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated sexual assault and one count of statutory rape, with eight additional charges taken into consideration, CNA reported.
Neither the offender nor his victim can be named in court due to gag orders protecting the identity of the 19-year-old victim, who is his biological sister.
The siblings lived with their parents and two older siblings in a one-room flat, where the offender would target his sister when no one else was present or when the family was asleep.
The victim did not report the abuse earlier due to the close relationship she shared with her brother, as well as feelings of fear and embarrassment.
In March 2022, the victim finally disclosed the abuse to her school counsellor, who immediately reported the matter to the police, leading to the brother’s arrest two days later.
Medical assessments revealed that the victim suffered severe psychological trauma, including suicidal thoughts, self-harm, and hypersensitivity to being touched on certain parts of her body.
Prosecutors argued that the offender had “absolutely devastated” the victim’s childhood by subjecting her to abuse in her own home, at times using violence such as slapping, punching, and pinching when she resisted.
The defence contended that the offender was very young when the offences began and is aware of the impact his actions have had on his family.
