Sexual violence is widely acknowledged as one of society’s most heinous crimes. And when these cases occur with a betrayal of trust, it feels even more unforgivable.
Johnson Hong Siang Yeu was recently convicted of such a crime. The 22-year-old Singaporean reportedly befriended a polytechnic student via an online dating app before inviting her to his flat and raping her.
He received a jail sentence and caning for his crime.
On 19 Apr, The Straits Times (ST) reported that Hong pleaded guilty to one charge of rape. He was sentenced to seven years’ jail and four strokes of the cane.
He was also required to pay a fine of S$2,000 for violating Covid-19 restrictions to meet the victim, who’s now 19.
According to the Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP), Hong first met the victim, then 17, through OkCupid in Apr 2020.
Source: Instagram for illustration purposes only
The pair grew close and she regarded Hong as a personal confidant. DPP Xuan confirms that the victim confided in Hong about all of her personal struggles.
On 9 May of the same year, she accepted an invitation to his house. When Hong suggested moving to his air-conditioned bedroom, she agreed due to the warm weather.
Hong offered her a back massage, after which the victim fell asleep. Aroused, Hong started to molest her.
At this point, the victim woke up and immediately pushed Hong’s hand away, asking him to stop. Hong ignored her protests and continued with the assault while covering her mouth and repeatedly telling her to trust him.
He then proceeded to rape the victim.
DPP Yeow said that the victim was “crying and pleading with him to stop” while struggling to push him off her.
Hong eventually stopped after a few minutes and apologised to the victim. She continued to cry, leaving his bedroom to use the toilet before exiting the premises at 4.15am.
Hong later apologised to the victim again via Telegram, asking her to put the whole incident behind them.
According to Channel NewsAsia (CNA), he texted,
Hope we can keep this between ourselves and forget about this.
TODAY reports that the victim informed a friend about the sexual assault but was wary of filing a police report. She eventually did so two days after the incident.
DPPs Xuan and Nicholas Lim argued for a harsher sentence and a S$3,500 fine for Hong for breaching regulations during ‘Circuit Breaker’.
To justify the sentence, DPP Xuan pointed to Hong’s severe abuse of the victim’s truth.
“The victim… laid down clear boundaries between herself and the accused,” DPP Xuan said. “In turn, he utterly betrayed the faith reposed in him by making advances on her.”
The court heard that the victim informed Hong she was not interested in a relationship when they first met on OkCupid. Hong acknowledged this and continued to befriend her.
Hong’s defence counsel, Mr Joshua Tong, asked for a lighter sentence as the incident was a “momentary lapse and a moment of folly”. In addition, he argued that there was no abuse of trust as the two had only been acquainted for two weeks.
During sentencing, District Judge Kok Shu En agreed that Hong committed a serious breach of trust. However, she also took Hong’s plea of guilt and his young age into account.
For rape, Hong could have been jailed for up to 20 years and fined or caned.
Those who violate Covid-19 laws can also be jailed for up to six months, fined S$10,000, or both.
Such serious crimes reflect the worst of humanity in our society. It is truly despicable of such individuals to commit these acts on the vulnerable, especially those who trusted them.
Online dating apps can be dangerous for this very reason, as you never know who could be hiding on the other side of the screen. Thus, it is vital to stay vigilant.
Hopefully, the victim can receive some peace of mind now that justice is served to her attacker. We also hope she’ll be able to recover from this traumatic experience.
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Featured image adapted from @pigeon_on_pigeon on Instagram and is for illustration purposes only.
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