Image from The Straits Times/ANN
SINGAPORE: A youth impregnated two underage girls in separate cases and the minors later terminated their pregnancies.
The 20-year-old offender pleaded guilty on Jan 12 to three charges, including one count of sexually penetrating a minor. He cannot be named due to a gag order.
He met the first victim through mutual friends and the pair started a romantic relationship in July 2020.
Deputy Public Prosecutors Melissa Heng and Adelle Tai stated in court documents that the offender was 17 at the time, while the girl was 12.
He was undergoing probation then for unrelated offences, but details were not disclosed in court documents.
Two months later, he became more controlling towards the girl and asked her to cut off contact with her friends.
The offender was the one who initiated physical contact with the victim in the first few months of their relationship, engaging in acts such as kissing and holding hands.
Soon after, they had sexual intercourse.
“The first victim felt pressured to do so as his girlfriend,” the DPPs told the court. “While the first victim was afraid of getting pregnant, she continued engaging in penile-vaginal sexual intercourse with the accused as she was in love with him.”
The couple engaged in sexual intercourse on at least 20 occasions. These sexual encounters mostly took place at a staircase landing of a Housing Board block of flats, the DPPs said.
One such incident took place between Dec 2 and 31 in 2020, when the girl was 13 years old.
A few months later, she realised that she could be pregnant when she missed her menstrual period.
She confided in the offender, but he dismissed her concerns and continued engaging in sexual activities with her.
The couple broke up in March 2021 and the following month, the girl told her mother that she could be pregnant.
Her mother took her to KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH), and medical staff confirmed the girl’s pregnancy.
KKH alerted the police and the girl had an abortion on April 27 that year.
Following the break-up, the youth started a romantic relationship with the second victim on May 15, 2022 – when he was 19 years old and the girl was 14.
He had sexual intercourse with the girl, and she also became pregnant with his child.
The DPPs said: “She informed the accused about her pregnancy, but the accused continued engaging in sexual intercourse with her.”
The second victim terminated her pregnancy on Nov 14 that year.
In an unrelated incident, the offender also committed rioting in July 2022.
He had met up with a group of youngsters in Punggol, and they rained blows on a 16-year-old boy who later went to KKH.
The teenager was found with injuries including a laceration on his right eyebrow and swelling on his lower lip.
The offender’s mitigation and sentencing are set for Feb 23. - The Straits Times/ANN
