A 20-year-old woman admitted in court on Monday (1 Sept) that she had lied to police about being raped, after a disagreement over money with a man she met online.
Claris Ling Min Rui, then 19, first connected with a 43-year-old man on the dating platform Sugarbook.
Source: Malay Mail, for illustration purposes only
They later continued chatting on Telegram and arranged to meet on 18 March this year.
The man agreed beforehand to give Ling S$200 for her company.
After having dinner and drinks at a bar, the pair went to a hotel along Orchard Road, where they had consensual sex.
Following the encounter, Ling demanded S$1,200 instead.
When the man refused, offering S$500 instead, she rejected the amount and scolded him.
Past midnight on 19 March, she threatened to call the police and accuse him of rape.
She eventually lodged a police report and sent the man a text message saying “You’re f***ed”, which shocked him.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
When officers arrived, Ling alleged that the man had raped her while she was intoxicated.
However, after checking hotel surveillance footage, police found her version of events did not match what was recorded.
At about 2.10am, Ling admitted that she had fabricated the allegation because the man had refused to pay the higher sum.
Ling pleaded guilty to two charges: one of giving false information to a public servant, and another under the Protection from Harassment Act for threatening to accuse the man of rape.
Her defence lawyer argued that probation would be an appropriate punishment, saying Ling had learnt a “very painful lesson”.
The judge ordered a probation suitability report and adjourned sentencing to 27 Oct.
If convicted, Ling faces up to two years’ jail, a fine, or both for giving false information, and up to six months’ jail, a fine of up to S$5,000, or both for using threatening words to cause alarm.
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Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News and by MS News.