> Daughter raped 23 times

A MAN sexually abused his teenage daughter from the time she was 13 till she was 15, going further with each successive assault on her.

He started off molesting her, his biological daughter, and then moved on to rape. The rapes began when she was 13 and took place at least once a month.

On Thursday, the 39-year-old admitted to raping her 23 times, outraging her modesty thrice and insulting her modesty by watching her as she took a shower.

His punishment: 28 years in jail and 24 strokes of the cane, the maximum allowed under the law.

High Court judge Woo Bih Li, condemning him for his ‘abhorrent’ behaviour, said: ‘As her father, you should have protected her. Instead you engaged in a campaign of sexual abuse against her.’

The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the girl, appeared downcast during sentencing.

The victim, now 16 and studying in a secondary school, is the oldest of his three children.

The court heard that her father began molesting her in late 2005, entering her room to grope her at night. The molestations went a step further each time.

The girl, then 13, was shocked and disgusted, but did not dare resist his actions and pretended to be asleep.

In March 2006, the man moved on to raping her at least once a month.

A few months later, he ordered her to use the bathroom attached to the master bedroom when she wanted to take a shower after school. He barged in during her shower and watched her.

He did this again on another occasion, and also raped her afterwards.

Eight months ago, on learning she had a boyfriend, he punished her by sending her away to her grandparents’.

Then he changed his mind about keeping her there. He took her to a hair salon to have her hair shorn short, then brought her home and raped her.

The sexual abuse came to light that month, when the girl told her boyfriend that her father had raped her.

The boy told a teacher and the matter was eventually referred to the vice-principal, who called the police.

The man was arrested the next day.

Yesterday, Deputy Public Prosecutor Jeyendran Jeyapal urged the court to impose a deterrent sentence.

Noting the girl’s youth, he said the man abused his position of authority, and that the girl has suffered psychological harm from the abuse; he also cited the number of attacks which increased in intensity as an aggravating factor.

The abuse would have continued had it not been for the girl’s boyfriend intervening, he said.

The man, in a mitigation letter, said he was a first-time offender and that his daughter and family had forgiven him.

His wife, siblings and the victim herself also submitted letters pleading for leniency because of the loss in family income. This held no sway with Justice Woo.

He said: ‘I want to stress that the plight of your family and your own plight is caused by you and you alone. No one is to blame your daughter.’