A 32-year-old man was released from prison, before committing the same crime again and being sent back to jail and caned.
The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, pleaded guilty to 2 charges of molestation on 16 February and was sentenced to 3 years imprisonment and 8 strokes of the cane, with another charge being considered during his sentencing.
Channel NewsAsia reported that the man had previously served a 26-month jail term and received 3 strokes of the cane for molesting his underage stepdaughter, and was released from prison on 17 August 2020.
The victim lived with her maternal uncle and auntie while her mother lived with the man after he was released from prison.
The man would interact with the victim at her aunt’s house in an effort to reunite the family in May 2021, but her mother and uncle had to be around during the interaction.
The family would also go on staycations and both the mother and the victim felt that the man wouldn’t re-offend, thinking that everything was okay.
The victim’s mother eventually decided to bring her back to live in their family home with the man, and he then molested her again 2 days after she moved in while the rest of the family were sleeping.
The man and the victim were playing video games in the living room at the time when he started molesting her, and she froze in place, not knowing how to react.
The man then stopped what he was doing and apologised to her, saying that he doesn’t want to go back to jail and told her not to tell anyone about what he just did.
The victim then fell asleep without responding to him but later woke up when he grabbed her hand and made her commit an explicit act on him.
The victim then went to live with her aunt on the same day, and that aunt noticed the girl crying to herself and asked her what was wrong.
She then revealed that her stepfather had molested her again, and the aunt then spent the next 2 days informing the child protection officer about what happened and lodging a report against the man.
The victim then ran away from her aunt’s home after having a nervous breakdown following the report, and her aunt and uncle didn’t want to continue taking care of her as well.
The police arrested the man and interviewed him, but he denied any wrongdoing with the victim – however, his DNA was later discovered on the victim’s underwear.
He is set to start his jail term in May after his pregnant wife gives birth to their latest child, and according to news reports, she has forgiven him for his latest offence of molesting her daughter (again).