Man accused of raping ex-lover says they had consensual sex, denies strangling her
SINGAPORE — A man on trial for strangling and raping his former girlfriend of about five years denied having broken up with her or forcing himself on her.
At the High Court on Tuesday (11 June), the man said, “I did not rape her. I did not strangle her. Yes, I accidentally tore a bit of her t-shirt. I love her entirely.”
The 42-year-old Malaysian faces one charge of aggravated rape committed on 6 August 2017. At the time of the alleged crime, he was 40 while the victim, who is also a Malaysian, was 29.
He cannot be named to protect the victim’s identity.
Accused pinned victim down: prosecution
The trial began in March with the prosecution laying out its case that the man had turned violent after she rebuffed his plea for reconciliation.
The victim testified that she first met and got into a relationship with the man in 2012. In 2015, the duo rented and stayed at a flat in Singapore. But after he was retrenched in February 2017, their relationship soured before they broke up.
Despite their breakup, the prosecution said the man returned to Singapore to look for work and would stay in the flat and sleep in a separate room from the victim.
On 2 August 2017, he returned to Singapore. The victim stayed at her aunt’s place in Singapore on 4 and 5 August to avoid the man. Her parents were then in Singapore and staying with the aunt.
On 6 August 2017, the victim returned to the flat and the man approached her and asked for reconciliation, according to the prosecution. When she was unreceptive, he allegedly grew violent.
“In her bedroom, he tore off her t-shirt and bra, slapped her, and forcibly pushed her onto her bed even as she shouted for help,” said Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Yvonne Poon at the start of the trial.
“He pinned her down onto the bed by her wrists. When she struggled and shouted, the accused strangled and threatened her. The victim was in a lot of pain,” said DPP Poon.
And even when he realised that she was having her period, the man was undeterred, according to the prosecution.
Later, the victim felt severe abdominal pain and he brought her to a nearby clinic. Inside the doctor’s consultation room, she asked for help and the police were called.
Officers arrested the man the next day.
Accused says he didn’t threaten victim
On the witness stand on Tuesday (11 June), the man said he hadn’t broken up with the victim and they had consensual sex on 6 August 2017.
He said he had hugged her from behind but when she turned, it caused a tear in her t-shirt. The duo also kissed, he added.
When asked by his lawyer Megan Chia how the victim’s t-shirt had become visibly torn, the man said he didn’t know.
“I did not tear it until this badly,” he told Judicial Commissioner Pang Khang Chau.
The man also said that there was no pressure on the victim and she allowed him to take off her clothes. He said he had unhooked her bra, and did not know how the undergarment was also found torn.
He also said that it was his habit to give the victim love bites during sex, and on this occasion, he bit her on her neck and breast.
Asked by Chia why he did not stop when she indicated that she was having her period, the man said they had sex several times before while she was menstruating, and there was also no blood on her sanitary pad.
As to the victim’s testimony that he had uttered a threat, “you die now”, the man denied saying it.
He also denied strangling the victim, covering her mouth, or putting any pressure on her neck or chest.
Victim spoke to doctor in Chinese
Afterwards, the victim had severe abdominal pain and the man helped her to a clinic nearby. He said he helped her sit on a bench and then registered her attendance at the reception counter.
Inside the doctor’s consultation room, the victim told the doctor that she had abdominal pain and was having her period, but she declined an injection to relieve the pain, the man said.
She then held on to the doctor with both her hands and said something in Chinese which the man said he didn’t understand.
When the man placed his hands on the victim’s shoulder, she shouted at him, “Don’t touch me, go away from me,” he told the court.
She then asked for her handphone and wallet, and the man went back to the nearby flat to retrieve the items.
He returned to the consultation room and asked the victim, “What happened baby, are you ok?”, but she again shouted at him to go away, he said.
The doctor then told the man to wait outside the room and he went out to get a drink. But as he was walking back to the clinic shortly after, he saw a police car and officers.
The man then sent text messages to the victim’s phone, pleading with her not to make a police report, and asking for forgiveness. “I did not do anything wrong, but I’m scared of the police,” he said.
The man was arrested the next day.
The trial continues with the prosecution cross-examining the man on Wednesday (12 June.)
If found guilty of aggravated rape, the man faces between eight and 20 years’ jail, along with at least 12 strokes of the cane.
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