Public Prosecutor v BLV: Sexual Assault, Outrage of Modesty, Children and Young Persons Act Offences
In Public Prosecutor v BLV, the High Court of Singapore heard ten charges against BLV for sexual offences against his biological daughter between 2011 and 2014. The Prosecution relied on the victim's testimony, supported by her mother's evidence and medical experts. BLV denied the incidents, claiming inconsistencies in the testimonies and a physical condition making intercourse difficult. The court found the victim's testimony convincing and convicted BLV on all charges, sentencing him to 23 years and 6 months' imprisonment and 24 strokes of the cane. BLV has appealed.
1. Case Overview
1.1 Court
High Court of the Republic of Singapore1.2 Outcome
Accused convicted on all ten charges
1.3 Case Type
Criminal
1.4 Judgment Type
Grounds of Decision
1.5 Jurisdiction
Singapore
1.6 Description
BLV was convicted of sexual offences against his daughter between 2011 and 2014. The High Court sentenced him to 23 years and 6 months' imprisonment and 24 strokes of the cane.
1.7 Decision Date
2. Parties and Outcomes
| Party Name | Role | Type | Outcome | Outcome Type | Counsels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Prosecutor | Prosecution | Government Agency | Judgment for Prosecution | Won | April Phang Suet Fern, Amanda Chong Wei-Zhen, Nicholas Lai Yi Shin |
| BLV | Defendant | Individual | Convicted on all charges | Lost | Siaw Kin Yeow, Richard, Peng Yin-Chia, Winna |
3. Judges
| Judge Name | Title | Delivered Judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Aedit Abdullah | Judicial Commissioner | Yes |
4. Counsels
| Counsel Name | Organization |
|---|---|
| April Phang Suet Fern | Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Amanda Chong Wei-Zhen | Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Nicholas Lai Yi Shin | Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Siaw Kin Yeow | JusEquity Law Corporation |
| Richard | JusEquity Law Corporation |
| Peng Yin-Chia, Winna | JusEquity Law Corporation |
4. Facts
- The Accused committed a series of sexual offences against his biological daughter between 2011 and 2014.
- At the time of the offences, the Victim was between 11 and 13 years old.
- The Prosecution relied heavily on the Victim’s testimony, which it argued was consistent with the evidence of her mother and of the medical experts.
- The Accused wholly denied the occurrence of these incidents.
- The Accused was convicted on all ten charges and sentenced to a global term of 23 years and 6 months’ imprisonment, and 24 strokes of the cane.
- The Victim disclosed the abuse to her Mother on 16 April 2014.
- The Mother reported the Accused to the police on 6 May 2014.
5. Formal Citations
- Public Prosecutor v BLV, Criminal Case No 58 of 2016, [2017] SGHC 154
6. Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Accused married the Mother | |
| Victim's date of birth | |
| Sexual abuse of the Victim by the Accused started | |
| Incident constituting the tenth charge | |
| Victim disclosed the abuse to her Mother | |
| Victim moved to her aunt’s place | |
| Mother reported the Accused to the police | |
| Hearing date | |
| Hearing date | |
| Hearing date | |
| Hearing date | |
| Hearing date | |
| Hearing date | |
| Hearing date | |
| Judgment date |
7. Legal Issues
- Sexual Assault by Penetration
- Outcome: The court found the accused guilty of sexual assault by penetration.
- Category: Substantive
- Outrage of Modesty of Person Under 14
- Outcome: The court found the accused guilty of outrage of modesty.
- Category: Substantive
- Offences under the Children and Young Persons Act
- Outcome: The court found the accused guilty of offences under the Children and Young Persons Act.
- Category: Substantive
- Sentencing for Sexual Offences
- Outcome: The court sentenced the accused to a global term of 23 years and 6 months’ imprisonment, and 24 strokes of the cane.
- Category: Procedural
8. Remedies Sought
- Imprisonment
- Caning
9. Cause of Actions
- Sexual Assault by Penetration
- Outrage of Modesty
- Sexual Exploitation of a Child
10. Practice Areas
- Criminal Law
- Sexual Assault
- Sentencing
11. Industries
- No industries specified
12. Cited Cases
| Case Name | Court | Affirmed | Citation | Jurisdiction | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haw Tua Tau and others v PP | N/A | Yes | [1981-1982] SLR(R) 133 | Singapore | Cited for the approach to determine if the Prosecution had established a prima facie case. |
| AOF v PP | N/A | Yes | [2012] 3 SLR 34 | Singapore | Cited for the legal standard that the complainant's evidence should be unusually convincing and the relevant considerations for assessing the evidence. |
| Farida Begam d/o Mohd Arthan v PP | N/A | Yes | [2001] 3 SLR(R) 592 | Singapore | Cited for the relevant considerations for assessing the evidence. |
| PP v Mardai | N/A | Yes | [1950] MLJ 33 | N/A | Cited for the principle that subsequent statements by the complainant herself constitute corroboration so long as that statement implicating the accused was made at the first reasonable opportunity after the commission of the offence. |
| Public Prosecutor v AUB | High Court | Yes | [2015] SGHC 166 | Singapore | Cited as an analogy with the offence of sexual assault by penetration to rape under s 375 of the Penal Code. |
| Public Prosecutor v Yap Weng Wah | N/A | Yes | [2015] 3 SLR 297 | Singapore | Cited as an analogy with the offence of sexual assault by penetration to rape under s 375 of the Penal Code. |
| Public Prosecutor v NF | N/A | Yes | [2006] 4 SLR(R) 849 | Singapore | Cited for the sentencing categories established in relation to rape offences. |
| AQW v Public Prosecutor | N/A | Yes | [2015] 4 SLR 150 | Singapore | Cited for the benchmark sentence of 6 to 8 months for the offence under s 7 of the Children and Young Persons Act. |
| Public Prosecutor v BNN | High Court | Yes | [2014] SGHC 7 | Singapore | Cited as a case concerning sexual abuse by a family member over an extended period. |
| BMD v Public Prosecutor | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2015] SGCA 70 | Singapore | Cited as a case concerning sexual abuse by a family member over an extended period. |
| Public Prosecutor v V Murugesan | High Court | Yes | [2005] SGHC 160 | Singapore | Cited for the sentencing considerations in cases involving serious sexual assault. |
| Lim Lye Huat Benny v Public Prosecutor | N/A | Yes | [1995] 3 SLR(R) 689 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that the accused had not been in a physical or mental state to consider his defence. |
| Kwek Seow Hock v Public Prosecutor | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2011] 3 SLR 157 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that if the fact or circumstance that is withheld will exculpate the accused from an offence, a court may justifiably infer that it is an afterthought and untrue, unless the court is persuaded that there are good reasons for the omission to mention that exculpatory fact or circumstance. |
| Public Prosecutor v Mohd Ariffan bin Mohd Hassan | High Court | No | [2017] SGHC 81 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that a delay in reporting the abuse may in some circumstances have adverse implications on the Prosecution’s case. |
| Khoo Kwan Hain v PP | N/A | Yes | [1995] 2 SLR(R) 591 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that although s 159 has the effect of elevating a recent complaint to corroboration, the court should nevertheless bear in mind the fact that corroboration by virtue of s 159 alone is not corroboration by independent evidence. |
| Lee Kwang Peng v Public Prosecutor | N/A | No | [1997] 2 SLR(R) 569 | Singapore | Cited for the delays of several months in which led to the complaints in those cases being disqualified as corroborative evidence. |
| Public Prosecutor v Mohammed Liton Syeed Mallik | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2008] 1 SLR(R) 601 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that what is important is the substance as well as the relevance of the evidence, and whether it is supportive or confirmative of the weak evidence which it is meant to corroborate. |
| Public Prosecutor v Chow Yee Sze | N/A | Yes | [2011] 1 SLR 481 | Singapore | Cited for the sentencing benchmark in relation to outrage of modesty simpliciter under s 354(1) of the PC. |
| Ng Kean Meng Terence v Public Prosecutor | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2017] SGCA 37 | Singapore | Cited for the recalibrating the sentencing framework for rape offences. |
| Public Prosecutor v AOM | N/A | Yes | [2011] 2 SLR 1057 | Singapore | Cited as a case involving protracted sexual abuse in the familial context. |
| Public Prosecutor v AHB | High Court | Yes | [2010] SGHC 138 | Singapore | Cited as a case involving protracted sexual abuse in the familial context. |
| Mohammed Shouffee bin Adam v Public Prosecutor | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2014] 2 SLR 998 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that the totality principle, which requires the Court at the final stage of sentencing to consider what would be a proportionate and adequate aggregate sentence having regard to the totality of the criminal behaviour of the accused person. |
13. Applicable Rules
| Rule Name |
|---|
| No applicable rules |
14. Applicable Statutes
| Statute Name | Jurisdiction |
|---|---|
| Children and Young Persons Act (Cap. 38, 2001 Rev. Ed.) | Singapore |
| Children and Young Persons Act (Cap. 38, 2001 Rev. Ed.) s 7(a) | Singapore |
| Penal Code (Cap. 224, 2008 Rev. Ed.) | Singapore |
| Penal Code (Cap. 224, 2008 Rev. Ed.) s 354(2) | Singapore |
| Penal Code (Cap. 224, 2008 Rev. Ed.) s 376(1)(a) | Singapore |
| Penal Code (Cap. 224, 2008 Rev. Ed.) s 376(4)(b) | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 68, 2012 Rev Ed) (“CPC”) | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 68, 2012 Rev Ed) s 133 | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 68, 2012 Rev Ed) s 261(1) | Singapore |
| Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Cap 322, 2007 Rev Ed) s 8(3) | Singapore |
| Women’s Charter (Cap 353, 2009 Rev Ed) ss 153(1) | Singapore |
| Women’s Charter (Cap 353, 2009 Rev Ed) ss 153(3) | Singapore |
| Evidence Act s 159 | Singapore |
| Evidence Act s 124 | Singapore |
| Evidence Act s 134(5)(a) | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 68, 1985 Rev Ed) s 123(1) | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code s 23 | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code s 22 | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code s 328(2) | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code s 228(2)(b) | Singapore |
15. Key Terms and Keywords
15.1 Key Terms
- Sexual Assault
- Outrage of Modesty
- Penile Penetration
- Digital Penetration
- Abuse of Trust
- Victim Testimony
- Penile Deformity
- Marital Communications Privilege
15.2 Keywords
- Sexual Assault
- Child Abuse
- Criminal Law
- Singapore
- High Court
- Sentencing
- Penetration
- Modesty
16. Subjects
- Criminal Law
- Sexual Offences
- Family Law
17. Areas of Law
- Criminal Law
- Sexual Offences
- Statutory Offences
- Criminal Procedure and Sentencing