[OMG] Ong Mingwee convicted Rape in Toa Payoh North

SINGAPORE - A man was convicted of raping a young woman at a flat in Toa Payoh North more than two years ago.

The Straits Times reported that Ong Mingwee, 29, who runs a family-owned provision shop, had claimed trial to the offence which took place at the unit above the shop at Block 203 in the early hours of Feb 12, 2009.

Ong was sentenced to seven years' jail and eight strokes of the cane on Tuesday.

But they ended up at his place, and he would not allow her to leave unless she had sex with him.The court heard that he met the 22-year-old woman for the first time at nightspot Zouk, and he danced with her. He then left with her in a cab at about 4am to take her home.

In convicting him, District Judge Hamidah Ibrahim said that his assertion that the woman had consented to have sex with him had not been made out.

Lianhe Wanbao also reported that the prosecution brought up nine points that showed that Ong had lied about not raping the woman.

These were:

1) A consultant forensic pathologist testified that the woman would not be capable of giving consent with her then-level of intoxication, which is estimated to be 255 ethanol per 100ml of blood.

2) The victim had made frantic calls to her mother and the girlfriend who was present at Zouk with Ong and the woman. The girlfriend also testified that the woman had sounded frightened over the phone. She was also crying when she asked them to take her home. Judge Hamidah said it did not make sense that the victim could not have gone from being frightened to willing.

3) The victim had been inside Ong's room for a while, yet she did not leave when she could have done so. This showed that she was intoxicated to the point where she could not make a decision for herself.

4) Ong knew that the woman wanted to leave, but he refused to let her leave until she had sex with him. He claimed that he wanted to get to know her better, but under interrogation, he admitted to feeling physical desire for her.

5) That the victim had been crying and it frustrated Ong showed that she was not willing to have sex with him.

6) The prosecution said Ong was not truthful when he said he did not bring the woman back to his place for the purpose of having sex. During his testimony, the prosecution pointed out that Ong had left the room to smoke, before coming back to the room where the victim was and climbed on top of her.

7) Ong had made use of the time and opportunity to ensnare the woman into satisfying his sexual desire. He claimed that he had been embarassed when she danced sexily against him in Zouk, and yet he had brought her back home and had sex with her when she was crying.

8) Ong said that he would hurt her. This also showed that the victim had feared for her safety, and she was under duress when she had sex with him.

9) Ong refused to reveal his address to the woman's mother. This showed that he had ill intentions.

Defence Counsel Goh Siok Leng will mitigate for him this afternoon.

source