Father Sentenced To Jail For Sexually Abusing Daughter With Intellectual Disability

A man who sexually assaulted his daughter with an intellectual disability has been sentenced to jail.

The 52-year-old Singaporean man, who cannot be named due to a gag order put to protect the victim's identity, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Monday.

He was accused of abusing his biological daughter twice, first when she was between 6 and 8 years old and again when she was 17.

The man pleaded guilty to two charges of sexual assault by penetration, including one aggravated charge, reported Channel News Asia. The court also took into account a third charge of molestation during the sentencing.

The abuse came to light in October 2018, when a teacher at a special education school noticed that the girl was unusually disturbed. When the teacher tried to probe into the matter, the girl admitted to being touched inappropriately by her own father. She also disclosed an earlier abuse that took place around 10 years back.

The school authorities reported the incident to the police and the victim's father was arrested. The girl has been staying in a shelter for abused teenage girls since the incident in 2018.

The court heard that the first incident of abuse happened between the years 2008 and 2009 when the girl shared a bedroom with her parents. The man sexually abused the child one night when her mother was not around. The girl was frightened to talk about the incident as she thought her parents would scold her. She reportedly tried to self-harm with a ruler and a stapler.

The second incident of abuse happened in 2018, after the girl's mother moved out of the matrimonial home. The girl was then living with her father, two of her uncles, her aunt and an older brother. The girl's father, who was drunk, was accused of sexually abusing the teen girl who shared a room with her.

A psychologist at Singapore's Institute of Mental Health (IMH) diagnosed the victim and found that she has a mild intellectual disability with a "lack of awareness about social norms and conventional consequences of behavior."

Deputy Public Prosecutor Chee Ee Ling described this case as "highly disturbing." He also pointed out the fact that the girl had experienced abuse from the man who was supposed to keep her safe. "The victim looked to the accused for fatherly love, affection and security. Instead of caring for and protecting her, the accused callously abused the victim to satiate his sexual desires,” he added.

The 20-year sentencing by the court includes one year in lieu of caning as the law does not permit offenders aged 50 or above to be caned.