FOR more than seven years, from when she was eight, a girl was
sexually abused over and over by a temple medium whom her parents
regarded as a close family friend. He was a 'spiritual adviser' to
the child's father, who was also a temple medium.
They trusted him so much that they let him sleep in their flat
on many occasions, during which time he would abuse the child.
On Friday, the man, now 59, admitted to multiple charges of
sexually abusing the girl, now 16 years old, and was jailed for 24
years. Married with four children aged 18 to 23, he will not be
caned as he is above the age of 50. Looking skinny and dishevelled
in court, the former coffee shop assistant faced 44 charges for
offences dating from January 2001 to May last year.
Because of the years of continual abuse, said Deputy Public
Prosecutor Gordon Oh, the child had grown into a teenager who hated
herself, mutilated her body and was promiscuous. 'That the victim's
own mother would unwittingly send her own daughter into the lion's
den was only possible because the accused had shamelessly betrayed
the trust bestowed upon him by the victim's family,' said the
prosecutor.
The High Court heard that the girl's father and the man got to
know each other in 2000, when they were mediums in a Chinese temple
and also did odd jobs for the same employer. He became a close
family friend - called 'uncle' by the victim and her three younger
sisters - and was regularly invited to sleep over at the family's
four-room flat.
In early 2001, while he was watching TV with the girl and her
younger sister, he began stroking the younger girl's leg. When she
moved away, he turned his attention to the victim, who responded by
hugging him. The touching became more frequent and one night, he
took her into the study where he slept and raped her. No one heard
her cries and he told her not to tell anyone about it. He carried
on raping her at her parents' flat.
After the couple divorced in 2004, the girl moved into a rented
flat with her mother. But her rapist remained in her life when her
mother let him babysit her while she worked. Her three other
sisters lived with their father.
By 2006, the rapist was having the teenager stay in his flat
during the school holidays. If she refused to go over when he
summoned her, he would have her mother send her.
The abuse came to light a few months later, in July, when the
girl confided in an aunt. It was only then that her parents learnt
of her ordeal. They went with her the next day to make a police
report.
On Friday, the man pleaded for leniency, saying he was
remorseful and in anguish every day. He pleaded guilty to five
counts of rape, one count of committing an indecent act on a child,
one count of sodomy and two counts of sexual assault of a minor.
The rest of the charges were taken into consideration during
sentencing.
--ST
