SINGAPORE: Two men were sentenced to jail on Wednesday (Sep 24) for sexually assaulting an intoxicated woman in a hotel and deleting incriminating messages between themselves in 2023.
The men were long-time friends who had known each other for about 20 years, while the woman previously worked under one of them. They were both veterans in her industry.
The first man, 50, was the victim’s ex-colleague. He was convicted of one charge each of molestation, sexual assault and obstructing justice.
He was sentenced to 13 years and 10 months in prison. This included six months’ jail in lieu of 11 strokes of the cane that he would have received if he were under 50.
The second man, 51, was convicted of six charges including rape, sexual assault, possessing an intimate image and obstructing justice.
He was sentenced to 18 years’ imprisonment. This included one year’s jail in lieu of the maximum 24 strokes of the cane that he would have been given if not for his age.
Justice Hoo Sheau Peng also ordered the offenders to compensate the victim for expenses like her medical treatment, including psychotherapy.
The men, both foreign nationals, cannot be named due to a gag order by the court preventing the publication of key information including their professions, nationalities and other details that might identify the victim.
They were found guilty in July after a trial at the High Court. Both offenders, dressed in suits, were expressionless as their sentences were read out to them on Wednesday.
They have indicated that they will file appeals, and were offered bail of S$100,000 (US$77,900) for the victim’s ex-colleague and S$150,000 for the older man.
VULNERABLE VICTIM IN GROUP ASSAULT
Justice Hoo said it was “appalling” that both men committed the offences despite their professional standing and experience.
They should have taken care of the woman when she was in a drunk and vulnerable state, but instead took advantage of her and sexually assaulted her together, said the judge.
The victim’s vulnerability because of her intoxication and the high degree of sexual exploitation involved were among the factors the judge considered in sentencing.
Justice Hoo noted the men’s argument that they did not force the victim to drink alcohol. She said this had no merit as what mattered was not whether they caused the victim’s vulnerability, but whether they exploited it.
The judge also agreed with the prosecution that the group nature of the sexual assault was an aggravating factor.
She explained this is because when multiple people act together, the trauma and sense of helplessness felt by the victim increases exponentially.
The older man had submitted a letter to the court in which he said he regretted the trauma and distress the victim suffered and wanted to apologise to her.
The man’s defence lawyer said this was an indication of remorse, but Justice Hoo said that having read the letter, it did not show genuine remorse.
THE ASSAULT AND AFTERMATH
The woman had passed out after drinking with the two men on Feb 26, 2023. This was after the ex-colleague invited her to his hotel room ahead of a planned dinner that never happened.
The woman testified that she had agreed to go up to the hotel room to drop off some sparkling water her ex-colleague had asked her to buy. She also saw it as a networking opportunity.
When she got there, she was offered alcohol and drank it while having casual conversation.
She testified that the conversation turned sexual under the men’s questioning, which made her uncomfortable, but she did not leave the room as she thought it would be impolite.
After the men plied her with alcohol, her hands started shaking from the amount she had drunk and she vomited on the bed before losing consciousness. She began drifting in and out of consciousness and this was her last clear memory.
She next remembered vomiting into the sink before sexual acts occurred. She recalled saying “no” many times but could not move or open her eyes.
She also recalled lying in the bathroom while someone showered her, but she could not fully control her muscles and was slurring.
When she woke up the next morning, she found blood stains on her underwear and felt weird, suspecting she had been raped.
She went to a hospital to get herself medically checked and the hospital made a police report. The two men were arrested at their hotel the same day.
The men admitted to the police that sexual acts had occurred. Their defence rested on arguments that the acts were consensual, and that the woman forgot about the consent she had given due to the alcohol she had consumed.
Justice Hoo accepted the woman’s account of events, finding that she was a credible witness who gave clear, coherent and textured evidence.
Where there were gaps in her memory, the woman candidly admitted this and did not try to embellish her evidence, the judge noted.
In contrast, Justice Hoo found the ex-colleague’s account of events “incredible” and the older man’s account “simply beyond belief”.
The judge also noted that after the incident, the ex-colleague made online searches for prompts including “what leaves dna in vagina after sexual activity” and “does shower after sex reduce dna testing”.
The accomplice also made online searches after the incident, such as “trick questions in rape cases” and “polygraph test tips”, and visited a webpage titled “Interview Strategies for Sexual Assault and Rape Investigations”.
Justice Hoo said these online searches betrayed their “guilty minds”.
The judge also found that the older man had taken a photo of the woman while she was naked, without her knowledge, and that the two men conspired to obstruct justice by deleting incriminating messages they had sent each other.
The victim’s ex-colleague was represented by a team from Withers KhattarWong led by Mr Chenthil Kumarasingam, while the older man was defended by a team led by Mr Eugene Thuraisingam.
