A Singapore court sentenced a man who forced his own son to have sex with his wife to 29 years in prison and 24 strokes of the cane - a common type of corporal punishment in the country. The sentence, which was issued on Monday, is also punishment for him sexually abusing his daughter when she was between nine to 15 years old.
The 41-year-old man, who lived with his family in a flat in the northern part of Singapore, reportedly forced his eldest son to have sex with his wife. Under threat of violence, the man forced his 15-year-old son to rape his drunk biological mother.
Before Justice Dedar Singh Gill on Monday, the man pled guilty to three charges. This included charges for his raping of his daughter and charges relating to him forcing his son to sexually penetrate his mother.
Investigators said the man raped his daughter because he did not want her to have sex with other men. The man first assaulted his daughter when she was just 11 years old in 2015. In 2017, the daughter told her brother about how she has been sexually assaulted by their father.
The siblings did not tell anyone else about their father's abuses as they were afraid of getting beaten and of ruining the family's reputation. The siblings also did not tell their mother as they knew she would confront their father who was ill-tempered and prone to violence.
In 2018, the family moved to another apartment. One night, the couple had gotten drunk and the mother had fallen asleep. The accused then reportedly forced his son to rape his wife. When the son refused, the accused became angry and threatened violence.
The daughter who became increasingly disgusted by her father's actions finally decided to run away and tell her aunt about what he had been doing. The aunt then brought her to the police station where they filed a report.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Victoria Ting said the case was "unprecedented" and the acts committed by the accused were "unthinkable." Ting said the man had victimized all of his immediate family members.
Justice Gil said the facts presented during the case were "repulsive" and the sentence must reflect the gravity of the man's actions.
"The acts are an assault on the basic values of being human. The sentences must reflect the gravity of such offenses and address the public disquiet which such offenses engender," Gil said during the sentencing.
