SINGAPORE — A teenager turned on his younger sister and raped her when she refused to have sex with him as a condition for playing games on the computer in his room.

On Friday (April 19), the teenager, now 18 years old, was given four weeks to engage a lawyer after he was found suitable for either probation or reformative training as a punishment.

He had pleaded guilty to one charge of rape earlier. A similar charge will be taken into consideration in sentencing.

Reformative training is a regime where young offenders are detained at a reformative training centre and undergo required rehabilitation programmes.

Probation, on the other hand, does not result in a recorded criminal conviction and allows young offenders to continue with their education or employment while serving their sentences. 

During the court hearing, Deputy Principal District Judge Kessler Soh said that he felt reformative training would be "more suitable" in this case. 

However, after the teenager and his parents kept pleading for leniency, the judge granted them four weeks to engage a lawyer.

He then warned the parents not to justify their son's actions when they tried to plead for a second chance during the hearing.

Due to a gag order, the teen, his sister and their parents' identities cannot be revealed.

WHAT HAPPENED

Sometime between Oct 1, 2021 and April 30, 2022, the teenager, then aged 15 or 16, and his younger sister, then 13, were in his bedroom playing games on his computer.

When she asked if she could play games on his computer when he was not around, he told her that she would have to have sex with him.

The girl initially said no, but her brother then said, "Why not? Nobody gonna know", court documents showed.

He continued to coerce her to have sex with him, before asking her to remove her clothes.

Scared of her brother, she complied with his instruction.

The boy then removed his clothes and raped her.

Despite the girl complaining of pain several times, he did not stop. 

He raped her a second time after that.

The depraved acts were not disclosed to anyone until sometime in September 2022, when his sister confided in a speaker from a volunteer group.

The speaker had been invited to her school to talk about "self-mastery" and "trauma", court documents stated.

The school authorities then helped the girl make a police report on Sept 16, 2022.

'HEINOUS OFFENCE THAT EXPLOITS YOUNGER SISTER'

Speaking in court after the teenager was found suitable for both probation and reformative training on Friday, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) June Ngian called for reformative training to be imposed.

Describing the case as "heinous", she said that the boy had "used his position and relationship as her older brother to manipulate and sexually exploit the victim".

"There is a strong public interest to deter all such conduct, especially by brothers towards their younger sisters, and ensure that vulnerable young minors are adequately protected from those who wield influence over them.

"The accused’s offence was extremely serious and, should there be even a risk of a repeat of the same, would result in serious harm to any potential victims," DPP Ngian added.

In response, the teenager apologised for committing the offence and pleaded for leniency.

"I know it's serious, but I was very young. I was only 16," he said.

He added while crying that he had written a letter of apology to his sister because he was not allowed to speak to his sister.

Deputy Principal District Judge Soh said that he was leaning towards sentencing the teenager to a "lengthy" period of reformative training.

The boy's parents then asked if they may address the court.

After being granted permission, the boy's mother revealed that they did not give the apology letter to his sister, so as to not affect her before she sits for her national examinations in school this year.

"I have two children suffering. The whole family is suffering. I sincerely appeal for a second chance... for my children, my family," the mother said.

When the judge said that he could grant time for the family to engage a lawyer, the boy's father said he feared that engaging a lawyer would be pitting his children against each other.

"Would I be against the younger sister, or my daughter, if I hired a lawyer?" he asked. "That's why, in the first place, we never engaged a lawyer."

As the parents continued to try to plead for a lighter sentence, the judge stopped them and told them to engage a lawyer.

He warned: "If you try to justify your son's actions, it is not going to work. His actions are wrong and he needs to realise it is wrong.

"No family can allow the child, their son, to do that to the younger sister."

The judge added that the lawyer would be convincing him on what sentence to impose, not change the boy's earlier plea of guilt.

The teenager will appear in court next month for sentencing.