Singapore jails ‘religious influencer’ 27 years for abusing 2 boys
What’s new: The 37-year-old got 24 strokes of the cane after pleading guilty to rape and molestation charges, with 12 more offenses considered.
A Singapore court sentenced a 37-year-old man to 27 years and 10 months in prison and 24 strokes of the cane for sexually abusing two brothers he had approached as a religious mentor and father figure. The younger boy, then 6 to 8, was raped repeatedly, while the older brother, then 11 to 12, was molested. The man pleaded guilty to three rape charges and two counts of molestation, with 12 other charges taken into consideration. Court reports said the boys were living with their grandmother while their mother was in a drug rehabilitation center. The offender, described in court as a self-styled religious influencer, was not an accredited Islamic or Quranic teacher. His identity and the mosque involved were withheld under gag orders protecting the victims.