2 men charged with raping 32-year-old woman under viaduct near Tuas West Road MRT station

SINGAPORE — Two men were charged on Thursday (March 10) with raping a woman under the Tuas viaduct along Pioneer Road two days ago.

Ahmed Rayhan, 30, and Alam Foysal, 36, each face one count of rape, which carries a maximum jail term of 20 years as well as a fine or caning. Court documents showed that they are both Bangladeshi.

The police said in a news release on Thursday morning that the alleged victim did not know the men and they had purportedly taken her to Pioneer Road, which is located within the Pioneer industrial estate, and assaulted her.

She cannot be named due to a court order to protect her identity.

Court documents stated that the pair allegedly raped her from about 12.30am to about 2.20am on Tuesday in the vicinity of Tuas West Road MRT Station, under the Tuas viaduct.

The police said that they received a call for help at about 7.25am. A 32-year-old woman was found injured but conscious along Pioneer Road.

When police officers arrived at the scene, they discovered that she had suffered multiple injuries on her head and body.

“She was conveyed conscious to the hospital. Upon medical examination, her injuries suggested that she might have been sexually assaulted,” they added.

Rayhan and Foysal were identified and arrested within 12 hours of the police report being made.

Officers from the Criminal Investigation Department, Police Intelligence Department, Public Transport Security Command and Jurong Police Division traced the pair through extensive ground inquiries and with the help of images from police cameras and closed-circuit television cameras.

In the State Courts on Thursday, District Judge Terence Tay ordered the men to be remanded for a week at Central Police Division.

A Bengali interpreter confirmed that the charges had been read to the duo. They appeared in court through a video-link, with one dressed in a flower-patterned light blue top.

They will return to court on March 17.

In their news release, the police said that they take all reports of sexual assault seriously and "will spare no effort to bring the perpetrators to justice".

"Members of the public are advised to report cases of sexual assault to the police so that offenders can be dealt with firmly and in accordance with the law to prevent them from causing further harm to other persons."