In a marriage, two people are united with a promise of protecting each other forever through thick and thin, in sickness and in health. So, what happens when your other half is caught doing the exact opposite?
In Singapore, seven married men have been charged with conspiring to rape four of their wives. The incident occurred in a span of eight years from 2010 to 2018, with most of the alleged cases happening in victims’ houses. The case was only revealed recently to the public.
On 31st October, four of the seven men were brought to court and faced charges including rape, sexual assault, and indecent assault. The men cannot be named owing to a gag order to protect the identities of the women. All four pleaded guilty to the charges.
Three of the men had allegedly made plans with the others to allow their respective wives and former wife to be raped. The trio also watched the crime and recorded several assaults for personal use. All four men had additionally conspired with one another to rape the latter’s wife while she was unconscious. This had taken place between 2010 and 2018.
According to events that were recounted in court, one of the men, who holds the most charges, played a central role in the entire affair. He had supposedly met another on an internet forum. This sparked the idea of them having sex with each other’s wives and seeing other men have sex with them.
The duo had planned to sedate their wives and allow the others to take advantage of their respective wives in their unconscious state. The two were also found to have secretly streamed themselves having sex with their wives to others. Prosecutors also claimed that the men would praise each other for the sexual acts, saying phrases like, “nice show“.
Their nefarious scheme was only discovered after one of the wives saw explicit footage of herself on her husband’s phone. According to her, she had noticed images of herself being blindfolded and “played” with. She then reported the incident to higher authorities, exposing the immoral behaviours of the men.
Prosecutors are seeking 19 to 23 years in prison and 24 canings for two of the men; 17 to 21 years in prison and 24 canings for the man who raped one woman; and 11 to 16.5 years in prison for another, with an additional six months in jail instead of caning.
As for the man who played a central role, he was initially due to plead guilty. However, he is currently seeking new legal counsel as his lawyers discharged themselves last week. The last two men were not at court as one had been jailed earlier in January, while the other is contesting charges against him. His trial is scheduled for 2023.
Sources: Mothership Singapore, The Star
Puteri Teja contributed to this article.
