The 42-year-old man who had tailed an intoxicated woman and her friend around Holland Village for nearly an hour before offering them a ride home and raping her has been sentenced to 15 years in prison and 12 strokes of the cane.
Dhanabalan Fok Jin Jin was also ordered to pay over S$18,000 in compensation to the victim.
Despite insisting the encounter, which occurred in 2021, was consensual, High Court Judge Valerie Thean dismissed Fok’s claims, ruling that the victim had been far too drunk to consent and that Fok had been “lying in wait” before striking.
His friend, 36-year-old Lee Kit, who had accompanied him throughout the night, earlier pleaded guilty to molesting the same woman.
He was sentenced in March 2024 to 20 months’ jail and four strokes of the cane, and later testified for the prosecution.
According to Shin Min Daily News, Fok had gone to Holland Village supposedly to buy medicated oil for his pregnant wife.
The victim had been celebrating her birthday in the area and was “very intoxicated”, the judgment text said.
When the Holland Village bar closed for the night, she and a friend struggled to book a car home, with several taxis rejecting them.
Stranded and unsteady, they eventually accepted a lift from Fok and Lee, believing they had little choice.
Source: The Pit Restaurant & Bar on Facebook
Deputy Public Prosecutors David Menon and Ashley Chin presented CCTV footage showing the two men trailing the pair from about 10.45pm to 11.30pm, before all four entered Fok’s vehicle.
Lee also testified that Fok followed them specifically because they were drunk.
The victim vomited and fell asleep during the ride.
Source: Google Maps
At her condominium, Lee used her access card to open the gate. Inside her home, both men assaulted her while she remained unconscious.
According to court documents, “the accused penetrated [her] vagina with his penis, and Lee Kit digitally penetrated [her] vagina”.
Her friend, who was asleep beside her, was not assaulted, according to The Straits Times (ST).
Audio from Fok’s in-car camera later captured him describing the assault as “shiok” — a Singlish term meaning enjoyable.
Source: eLitigation website
Fok provided several conflicting accounts. He initially denied having sex with the victim at all, until prosecutors played the incriminating in-car audio.
The audio captured him expressing fear about “being identified upon realising that [the victim] was not comatose”, a previous judgment text said.
Source: eLitigation website
He then told police that the woman had touched him first while they were kissing on the bed, ST reported.
During the trial, he changed his story again, claiming she stroked his thigh.
“According to the accused, after C had stroked his thigh, he became aroused and decided to kiss C in order to ascertain if C was interested in sexual intercourse,” the judgment text said.
Justice Thean rejected his accounts as lies reflecting a “guilty conscience”. Fok said he had lied because he feared his wife would find out.
At the time of the offence, his wife was six months pregnant.
After the pair left the unit, they discussed whether they might get into trouble with the police.
Fok then realised he had left his mobile phone inside the victim’s home.
Source: eLitigation website
Both men returned to the condominium and tried to persuade her to hand it over.
By then, the victim had woken up, describing her body as feeling “on fire”. She had already called the police before the men came back.
Justice Thean noted that the abuse of trust was aggravated by the men gaining access to the victim’s home: “The violation of a shared home augments the breach of trust.”
She gave Fok 15 years’ imprisonment,12 strokes of the cane, and a compensation order for the sum of $18,524.12.
Also read: S’pore man who raped drunk woman claims he can’t pay compensation despite S$6.6K monthly salary
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Featured image adapted from Google Maps and MS News.