PP v Lee Seow Peng: Rape, Sexual Grooming, & Children and Young Persons Act Offences
In Public Prosecutor v Lee Seow Peng, the High Court of Singapore convicted Lee Seow Peng on charges of rape, sexual grooming, and attempting to procure an indecent act from a child. The charges arose from online communications and a physical encounter between Lee Seow Peng and a minor. The court sentenced Lee Seow Peng to 12 years of imprisonment and nine strokes of the cane. Lee Seow Peng has appealed against the convictions and sentences.
1. Case Overview
1.1 Court
High Court of the Republic of Singapore1.2 Outcome
Accused convicted on all charges. Appeal against convictions and sentences filed.
1.3 Case Type
Criminal
1.4 Judgment Type
Grounds of Decision
1.5 Jurisdiction
Singapore
1.6 Description
Lee Seow Peng was convicted of rape, sexual grooming, and attempting to procure an indecent act from a child, stemming from online interactions and a physical encounter with a minor.
1.7 Decision Date
2. Parties and Outcomes
| Party Name | Role | Type | Outcome | Outcome Type | Counsels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Prosecutor | Prosecution | Government Agency | Conviction | Won | Jasmine Chin-Sabado of Attorney-General’s Chambers Star Chen Xinhui of Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Lee Seow Peng | Defendant | Individual | Conviction | Lost |
3. Judges
| Judge Name | Title | Delivered Judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Hoo Sheau Peng | Judicial Commissioner | Yes |
4. Counsels
| Counsel Name | Organization |
|---|---|
| Jasmine Chin-Sabado | Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Star Chen Xinhui | Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Kertar Singh s/o Guljar Singh | Kertar Law LLC |
4. Facts
- The Accused and the Complainant became acquainted through a mobile phone application.
- The Complainant told the Accused that she was 13 years old.
- The Accused and the Complainant exchanged messages on sexual matters.
- The Accused picked the Complainant up in his car and drove her to a public car park.
- The Accused and the Complainant had sexual intercourse in the Accused’s car.
- The Accused sent the Complainant messages suggesting meeting up for the purpose of having sex.
5. Formal Citations
- Public Prosecutor v Lee Seow Peng, Criminal Case No 56 of 2015, [2016] SGHC 107
6. Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Accused and Complainant became acquainted through a mobile phone application. | |
| Complainant sent a Whatsapp message to the Accused stating that she was 13. | |
| Accused sent a message to the Complainant asking her to be his girlfriend, to which the Complainant agreed. | |
| Accused picked the Complainant up in his car. | |
| Accused drove the Complainant to a public car park located at the Chinese Garden. | |
| Accused sent the Complainant various SMS and Whatsapp messages suggesting meeting up for the purpose of having sex. | |
| Police report lodged. | |
| Complainant underwent medical examination. | |
| Complainant was referred to Child Guidance Clinic for psychiatric assessment. | |
| Trial began. | |
| Accused began serving sentence. | |
| Judgment issued. |
7. Legal Issues
- Rape
- Outcome: The court found that the Accused had sex with the Complainant who was below 14 years of age, and therefore committed an offence of rape within the meaning of s 375(1)(b), but punishable under s 375(2) of the Penal Code.
- Category: Substantive
- Sexual Grooming
- Outcome: The court found that the Accused intended to have sex with the Complainant at the time of the meeting on 29 May 2012, and that he could not have reasonably believed that the Complainant was of or above the age of 16 years. Accordingly, the court convicted the Accused of the second charge.
- Category: Substantive
- Attempting to Procure an Indecent Act
- Outcome: The court found that the Accused attempted to procure sexual intercourse from the Complainant. Accordingly, the court convicted the Accused of the third charge.
- Category: Substantive
- Consent
- Outcome: The court found that there was a reasonable doubt that the sexual intercourse took place without consent.
- Category: Substantive
- Mistake of Fact
- Outcome: The court rejected the Accused’s defence that he did not believe that the Complainant was only 13 years old.
- Category: Substantive
8. Remedies Sought
- Imprisonment
- Caning
- Fine
9. Cause of Actions
- Rape
- Sexual Grooming
- Attempting to Procure an Indecent Act
10. Practice Areas
- Criminal Law
- Sexual Offences
11. Industries
- Legal
12. Cited Cases
| Case Name | Court | Affirmed | Citation | Jurisdiction | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farida Begam d/o Mohd Artham v Public Prosecutor | High Court | Yes | [2001] 3 SLR(R) 592 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that a court should look at the internal consistency in the content of the witness’ evidence, as well as the external consistency between the content of the witness’ evidence and the other extrinsic evidence. |
| Yeo Kwan Wee Kenneth v Public Prosecutor | High Court | Yes | [2004] 2 SLR(R) 45 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that a court is competent, for good and cogent reasons, to accept one part of the testimony of a witness and reject the other. |
| XP v Public Prosecutor | High Court | Yes | [2008] 4 SLR(R) 686 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that where a witness is unusually convincing, a conviction can be sustained on the witness’s evidence alone, without independent corroboration. |
| Public Prosecutor v Iryan bin Abdul Karim & Ors | High Court | Yes | [2010] 2 SLR 15 | Singapore | Cited for the definition of 'consent' as requiring 'voluntary participation, not only after the exercise of intelligence, based on the knowledge of the significance and the moral quality of the act, but after having freely exercised a choice between resistance and assent'. |
| R v William Christopher Millberry | English Court of Appeal | Yes | [2003] 2 Cr App R (S) 31 | England and Wales | Cited for the four broad categories of rape. |
| Public Prosecutor v NF | High Court | Yes | [2006] 4 SLR(R) 849 | Singapore | Cited for the four broad categories of rape and the benchmark sentences in Singapore for each category. |
| Public Prosecutor v Qiu Shuihua | High Court | Yes | [2015] 3 SLR 949 | Singapore | Cited for the proposition that any relationship between the Complainant and the Accused and any consent on the part of the Complainant was not a mitigating factor. |
| Public Prosecutor v Wang Jian Bin | High Court | Yes | [2011] SGHC 212 | Singapore | Cited as a case precedent for sentencing. |
| Public Prosecutor v Hang Tuah bin Jumaat | High Court | Yes | [2013] SGHC 28 | Singapore | Cited as a case precedent for sentencing. |
| Public Prosecutor v Sim Wei Liang Benjamin | High Court | Yes | [2015] SGHC 240 | Singapore | Cited as a case precedent for sentencing. |
| Public Prosecutor v Poong Foo Yun | District Court | Yes | [2010] SGDC 423 | Singapore | Cited as a case precedent for sentencing. |
13. Applicable Rules
| Rule Name |
|---|
| No applicable rules |
14. Applicable Statutes
| Statute Name | Jurisdiction |
|---|---|
| Penal Code s 375(1)(b) | Singapore |
| Penal Code s 375(2) | Singapore |
| Penal Code s 375(3)(b) | Singapore |
| Penal Code s 376E(1) | Singapore |
| Penal Code s 376E(2) | Singapore |
| Children and Young Persons Act s 7(b) | Singapore |
| Children and Young Persons Act s 2(1) | Singapore |
15. Key Terms and Keywords
15.1 Key Terms
- Sexual intercourse
- Sexual grooming
- Mobile phone application
- SMS messages
- Whatsapp messages
- Public car park
- Chinese Garden
- Sexual exploitation
- Indecent act
15.2 Keywords
- Rape
- Sexual Grooming
- Children and Young Persons Act
- Singapore
- Criminal Law
- Minor
- Online Communication
17. Areas of Law
| Area Name | Relevance Score |
|---|---|
| Criminal Law | 95 |
| Sex Crimes | 90 |
| Penal Code | 85 |
| Children and Young Persons Act | 80 |
| Sexual Grooming | 75 |
| Child Abuse and Neglect | 70 |
| Children's Welfare | 60 |
| Criminal Procedure | 50 |
16. Subjects
- Criminal Law
- Sexual Offences
- Child Protection