Man, 67, on trial for raping maid while the family was away
The man allegedly offered the domestic helper wine and "supplement injections" before raping and sexually assaulting her.
A general view of the Supreme Court from across the Singapore River on Sep 23, 2022. (File photo: CNA/Try Sutrisno Foo)
This audio is generated by an AI tool.
SINGAPORE: A 67-year-old man went on trial in the High Court on Tuesday (Jul 9) for raping his family's domestic helper, then aged 35, after offering her wine.
The Singaporean man, who cannot be named due to gag orders imposed by the court, is contesting five charges including rape, sexual assault and outrage of modesty.
The prosecution's case is that the maid was alone at home with the accused on the night of Jan 5, 2020. The rest of the family was overseas.
According to the prosecution, the accused invited the maid to watch television with him and offered her wine. He also gave her "certain supplement injections", said Deputy Public Prosecutors James Chew, Tin Shu Min and Yap Jia Jun.
The man administered the injections to the maid on a sofa in the living room before allegedly launching his sexual assault on her.
Over the span of about half an hour, he allegedly raped and sexually violated the woman.
The woman did not consent to any of the acts but was unable to resist, as she was feeling too giddy and weak from what she had consumed, said the prosecutors.
The man then carried the woman back to her bedroom and placed her on the bed.
After the woman woke up at about 4am the next morning, she called her sister in a distressed state. She told her employer what happened once they returned home on Jan 8, 2020.
A video clip capturing part of the conversation will form part of the prosecution's evidence.
The woman was taken to lodge a police report on Jan 9, 2020 before being examined by a doctor, who will give evidence in the trial.
The prosecution said in its opening statement that they would show evidence from the victim about how the offences happened.
They will also use evidence from the victim's sister, closed-circuit television footage from the living room capturing the assault, as well as the accused's own admissions in video-recorded interviews.
"In particular, the CCTV footage from the living room will show that the accused had performed the sexual acts on the victim while she was in a very weakened and unresponsive state, and that the acts were not consensual," said the prosecutors.
They said they would also show how the accused deliberately shifted the camera in the victim's bedroom to face away from the bed.
The prosecution will also call doctors from Changi General Hospital who examined the accused for his erectile dysfunction, to show it was possible for him to have raped her despite the condition.
The trial took place in camera, away from the public and media, on Tuesday, as the victim was slated to take the stand.
The man is unrepresented.
If convicted of rape or sexual assault by penetration, he faces up to 20 years' jail and a fine.
For outrage of modesty, he could be jailed up to two years and fined.
As the victim is a domestic worker, the man can face up to double the maximum punishments.
He cannot be caned as he is above 50.
