A bus captain in Singapore befriended a 13-year-old girl who was a bus enthusiast. After frequent contact, the two started dating, and during the relationship, the bus captain rented a car and took her to a multi-storey car park where they had sex. He was sentenced to eight years in prison and six strokes of the cane.
According to Shin Min Daily News, the 30-year-old defendant faced a total of seven charges, including statutory rape and violating the Films Act. On the 25th, he pleaded guilty to one charge, with the remainder considered during sentencing.
The victim was only 13 years old at the time and very interested in various types of buses. To protect the victim, the judge ordered the media not to publish any information that could reveal her identity, including the defendant's name.
According to the case details, the defendant was a bus captain at the time and his route covered the way the victim took to school every day.
Around November 2021, the victim met the defendant through a friend. The defendant also learned her year of birth from her account and knew she was underage. The two then frequently contacted each other online, and a week later, the defendant asked her out. Since then, their relationship gradually became closer, and they often went out together.
On December 9, while on a date with the victim, the defendant rented a car and took her to a multi-storey car park. After parking, the defendant began kissing the victim, and they subsequently had sex.
During their relationship, the defendant often took the victim to bus stops to take photos of buses. Nearly every day after work, he would meet up with the victim after school. The two broke up in early 2022.
Between February and April 2022, two of the victim's aunts noticed her behaving unusually. When they questioned her, she confessed to having had sex with the defendant. The aunts wanted to report the matter to the police, but the victim begged them not to. On June 29 of the same year, the victim changed her mind and asked her aunt to take her to file a police report. The defendant was arrested that same day.
The prosecution pointed out that the aggravating factors in this case included the defendant assaulting the victim multiple times, and that he had sent nude photos of himself to the victim. As a result, they urged the judge to sentence him to eight to nine years in prison and six strokes of the cane.
The defendant's lawyer argued in mitigation that the defendant did not use violence during the offence, had a low risk of reoffending, and hoped to start life anew after his release. The lawyer pleaded for a lighter sentence from the judge.