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S'pore PR, 49, gets 12 years' jail & 13 strokes of cane for raping woman in her home after carrying out repairs
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A 49-year-old renovation contractor was sentenced to 12 years and three weeks' jail and 13 strokes of the cane on Nov. 26 for raping a woman when he was at her house to carry out repair works.
Koh Lee Hwa, a Singapore permanent resident, was found guilty on Oct. 28, 2025.
He was 45 years old when the offences were committed between about 11:40am and 12:40pm on Aug. 23, 2021.
He was convicted of four charges, including rape, sexual assault by penetration and outrage of modesty.
Koh is married.
His case was heard in the High Court in July 2025.
What judge said previously
The judge previously said the victim's testimony was credible, as she had provided a detailed description of how she was assaulted, and that the text messages she sent to a friend on the day in the aftermath of the incident corroborated with her account.
The judge also said that based on the woman's interactions with Koh, she only considered him a repairman, and it was not possible for her to spontaneously agree to have unprotected sex with him.
The victim' identity is protected by a gag order and her age was redacted in court documents.
She first hired Koh to renovate her flat in 2015.
She would contact him for renovation and electrical works over the years.
Before the incident, their last messages were exchanged in 2019 regarding some works.
The rape
On Aug. 21, 2021, the woman contacted Koh via WhatsApp to repair the faulty light in the common toilet and the light switch in the kitchen.
On Aug. 22, Koh repaired the light switch and told the woman that the toilet light was not working due to a wiring issue in the main circuit switchboard.
After he quoted S$430 for the job, she transferred a S$200 deposit to his bank account.
Koh then told her that he would return the next day with the necessary parts to complete the repairs.
Returned to make repairs
Shortly after 11:42am on Aug. 23, Koh returned to the flat and made repairs at the common toilet.
The victim, who was alone in the flat at the time, went to the master bedroom while Koh did the repairs.
After a few minutes, Koh told the woman he had finished repairing the toilet light, and that he would be repairing the switchboard, which was in the hall.
The woman came out to inspect the repairs, and also conversed with Koh in the hall about the repair works.
In the hall, Koh pulled the woman to him and allegedly hugged her without her consent.
Shocked, she pushed him away and went back to the bedroom.
At 12:09pm, the woman messaged two of her friends, saying that Koh had hugged her and she was scared.
She remained inside the room, hoping that Koh would finish the repairs quickly and leave.
A few minutes later, Koh told her that he was done repairing the switchboard and asked her to turn on all the switches in the flat to ensure that they were working.
She complied and Koh then asked her to check the bedroom.
The woman checked that the switches in the bedroom were working fine, before going into the bedroom toilet to check the light and water heater.
Stood outside toilet in bedroom
When she exited, Koh was standing outside the toilet.
He pushed her against a dressing table and allegedly hugged her again.
Though she tried to push him away, and told him to let her go and to leave, Koh did not stop.
Instead, he pushed her onto the bed, lifted her shirt and bra without her consent, and kissed and sexually assaulted her, ignoring her pleas to stop.
During the assault, the woman bit Koh on his shoulder to make him stop, but to no avail.
Friends informed, helped victim
After the assault, the woman remained in a daze.
At 12:36pm, she texted her friend that Koh had raped her.
Koh left the flat after the incident, sometime before 12:38pm.
Three of the woman's friends went over from about 1:46pm onwards to check on her.
The woman did not want to make a police report at the time as she did not want to tell others about what had happened to her.
They advised her to see a doctor at KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH), and also drove her there.
At KKH, she was referred to the police, and lodged a police report at 4:18pm about the alleged rape.
Koh was arrested on the same day at 7:55pm.
Perpetrator's version of events
In Koh’s statements to the police, he admitted to committing sex acts on the victim.
Taking the stand on Jul. 31, he claimed that the sexual encounter led to the woman biting him in excitement and her uttering the word "money" before he left.
He said the sexual encounter, which "happened very quickly" and took slightly over 10 minutes, was comparable to the "standard" length of time for sex between him and his wife.
He told the court during trial: “How could it happen so fast if it was rape?”.
Said victim wanted encounter
Koh also denied the allegations that he had hugged the woman, and said she pulled his right arm while they were outside the master bedroom toilet after checking the water heater.
He said he asked her in Mandarin, "What do you want?"
The woman repeated the words back to him, he claimed.
He then said "things happened very quickly", and they landed on the bed, and that the woman made sounds indicating she was excited.
He also claimed she bit him in excitement while they were having sex, and he pushed her to stop her because he did not want his family to know he had an affair.
Koh claimed that after having sex and when he told her he was leaving, she said the word "money" and he replied "don't have".
He said he was not sure if the woman was asking him for money or referring to the amount that she owed him for the repair job.
Said woman was jealous
Koh added that the woman might have been jealous of him because she saw the gold chain he was wearing, which was worth S$20,000 to S$30,000.
He said he suspected she might have been envious of him.
When the judge asked about its relevance to the incident, he said it was just his view.
He also said he did not hug her, and that he was a "righteous and upright person".
Koh disagreed with the prosecutor's argument that the woman did not grab his arm and that she never expressed romantic or sexual interest in him.
He claimed they were both "in the mood" and that the woman was attempting to entice him by tugging on his arm.
He also disagreed with the prosecutor's argument that the woman had tried to push him away and told him to let her go.
Looking to appeal
According to CNA, the prosecution sought 14 years' jail and 13 strokes of the cane, saying his actions showed a "callous disregard" for the victim's dignity and well-being.
The defence lawyers sought 11 years and three weeks' jail and 12 strokes of the cane.
The judge said Koh exposed the victim to the risk of unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases by not using a condom, and the "secure sanctuary" of the victim's home and bed was violated as a result of the rape.
However, the judge added that she did not find that Koh conducted his defence in a manner that could lead to an uplift or increase in the sentence, which the prosecution sought.
Koh indicated that he wished to appeal and was given bail.
His daughter remained as his bailor.
He could have been jailed up to 20 years, fined or caned for rape and sexual assault by penetration.
The offence of molestation carries a jail term of up to three years, a fine, caning or any combination of these punishments.
Top photo via Shin Min Daily News & Unsplash
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