Singapore:
A 21-year-old Singaporean youth has been sentenced to 13 years in jail and 12 strokes of caning for flip-flopping on a guilty plea for raping a teenage girl.
The man was 20 years old when he first admitted to the rape charge and pleaded guilty in September, 2014.
But he withdrew his plea when he was to be sentenced on October 17, three days before he turned 21, The Straits Times reported today.
He then gave up the chance to be given lighter punishment of reformative training, which would have been between 18 months to three years for offenders below 21 years of age.
However, the youth changed his mind and yesterday pleaded guilty again to aggravated rape, wrongful confinement, criminal intimidation and causing hurt to the girl who was then 13-years-old.
But he was no longer eligible for reformative training, though his lawyer had earlier asked for it and a subsequent report had recommended it.
The youngster, who has been absent without leave from the full-time National Service or conscription, had tricked the girl and brought her to his house in May, 2013.
He used various forms of coercion and asked the girl to have sex with him for money. He tried to push her down on the bed a few times and tried to unsuccessfully tape her mouth.
He also covered her face with a blanket and punched her, the report said.
Having failed, he threatened to hurt her using a knife following which the girl relented.
She managed to escaped from his home the next morning when the youth’s mother came home.
Her mother later accompanied her to report the incident to police.
Yesterday, he also pleaded guilty to having sex with three minor girls, who were at the time in relationships with him between October, 2012 and December, 2013.
