Man gets jail, caning for abusing 6-year-old boy for 18 hours

When the man pleaded guilty in July, Deputy Public Prosecutors Timotheus Koh and Cheronne Lim asked for between nine years and six weeks’ to 10 years and eight weeks’ jail for the man, on top of six strokes of the cane.

Most of the man’s actions were captured on CCTV, and the videos “really show the extent of the depravity” of his actions and the cruelty he inflicted on his young victims, said Mr Koh at the time, adding that the videos are very difficult to watch.

Defence lawyer Sarbrinder Singh of Sanders Law, had argued for seven years and two weeks’ prison and caning for his client instead.

In mitigation, the defence claimed that the man suffers from sleepless nights and that he was very remorseful for his actions.

The man requested to delay his sentence by one week to carry out prayers next week. The judge denied his request. 

WHAT HAPPENED

The man was responsible for managing the accommodation and teaching the primary school students mathematics and English, despite having no teaching or childcare qualifications.

In one incident, after noticing that the 10-year-old boy did not do his homework, the man demanded an explanation. Upon failing to get one, he punched and slapped the boy in the face at least five times.

He punched the boy in the face multiple times again when he could not answer one of the questions while doing his homework.

The next day, the boy’s teachers observed the bruise on his cheek and the school counsellor lodged a police report.

The man also made the two older boys hold a push-up position and hit them with a hanger multiple times.

His youngest victim – the six-year-old boy – moved into the accommodation under the man’s care in January 2023. The 31-year-old would punish the boy frequently, the court heard.

Other than forcing the boy to hold a push-up position, he also made him sleep in the toilet and fed him bread and water instead of proper meals.

In the incident that led to the 46-day hospitalisation period, the man abused the boy for about 18 hours – hitting him with a hanger at least 620 times, stomping on him at least 45 times and kicking him in the ribs at least once.

When his aunt, who was also his employer, arrived at the unit, she saw the state the boy was in and told the man to stop physically punishing the boy, but the man continued to hit and kick him. 

He only stopped after his aunt carried the boy out of the toilet and away from him.

His aunt wanted to send the boy to the hospital immediately, but the man dissuaded her because he was scared and worried that he would be arrested, the court heard.

Days later, the woman called the boy’s parents. She brought him to the hospital early the next day, when the boy complained of breathing difficulties and was coughing badly.

Upon arriving at the hospital, he was immediately transferred to the resuscitation room and then the children’s intensive care unit, where he stayed for 15 days.

He suffered from lung injuries caused by blunt force and kidney failure, requiring kidney dialysis for nine days. The kidney failure also resulted in severe hypertension, or high blood pressure, the court heard.

The six-year-old boy also suffered from rhabdomyolysis – a muscle injury where muscles break down – and multiple rib fractures. 

An individual who is convicted of voluntarily causing grievous hurt to a person may be punished with a jail term of up to 10 years, a fine and caning. If the victim is below 14 years old, they could face up to twice the maximum punishment.

For ill-treating a child or young person, the man could have been sentenced to up to eight years’ jail, a fine of up to S$8,000 (US$6,200), or both.

For making a false statement in a work pass application, he could have faced up to 12 months’ jail, a fine of S$15,000, or both.