Married man accused of rape: Girl, 12, was one of his 3 girlfriends
Man facing trial for rape of a minor has a wife with whom he lives in a five-room flat
Being a married man did not stop him from having three girlfriends.
And one of them was a then-12-year-old girl who later accused him of rape.
On the fourth day of his trial yesterday, the court heard that crane operator Lee Seow Peng, now 39, has a 38-year-old wife and they live in a five-room flat at Telok Blangah Heights.
According to his police statement, which Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Star Chen read out in court, Lee admitted that besides the underage girl, he had two other girlfriends.
One of them was a woman, 24, with whom he had sex on two occasions and another was a woman whom he met twice.
Lee, who is not represented by a lawyer, is accused of one count each of rape, sexually grooming a minor and attempting to procure the commission of an indecent act by the child. (See report below.)
Lee said in his statement that he first met the girl on a social networking portal.
He used the name Lucifer when they became acquainted on May 26, 2012.
According to his statement, the girl had claimed then that she was a student, 18. But the prosecution contended earlier in the trial the girl had told Lee that she was 13.
CHINESE GARDEN
Lee told the police that two days after they became acquainted, he picked her up after school in his Toyota multi- purpose vehicle (MPV) at a Bukit Batok bus stop and they went to the Chinese Garden in Jurong.
Lee had also said that they took a short walk in the garden before they went back to his MPV and chatted.
After that, she said that she was tired and wanted to go home.
Referring to the girl as his "ex", he told the police that he sent her back to her home in the western part of Singapore after going for a meal at a fast-food restaurant.
In his statement, Lee said that he did not have sex with the girl.
He also said that he did not hug, kiss or touch her.
Lee cross-examined investigation officer Station Inspector (SI) Colin Ng, who was in the witness stand yesterday, after DPP Chen completed reading out the statement.
He asked the officer why DNA swabs were not taken from his MPV.
SI Ng replied that because a police report was only made on June 3, 2012 - five days after the alleged rape - many people could have sat in the vehicle during the interim, leaving behind their own DNA.
Lee also asked why the police did not take clothes belonging to him and the girl as evidence.
When questioned by DPP Jasmine Chin-Sabado, the officer replied that due to the lapse between the day of the alleged rape and the time the police were notified, the clothes could have been washed and may not be available.
The trial resumes today.
About the case
Lee Seow Peng is accused of raping a 12-year-old girl three days after meeting her through a mobile phone messaging app.
The crane operator, now 39, first met the then-Secondary 1 student on a social networking portal on May 26, 2012.
They met three days later and he drove her to a carpark at the Chinese Garden, where he allegedly had non-consensual sexual intercourse with her in the backseat of his car.
On June 3, that year, Lee allegedly attempted to arrange another meeting with the girl with the intention of having sex with her again.
Her mother discovered his message and the girl then told her about the alleged rape.
The girl's parents made a police report soon after this.
Last Wednesday, Lee pleaded not guilty to one count each of rape, sexually grooming a minor and attempting to get the girl to perform an indecent act.
If found guilty of rape, Lee can be jailed up to 20 years and given at least 12 strokes of the cane.
If convicted of sexually grooming a girl under 16, he can be jailed up to three years and fined.
If found guilty of attempting to procure the commission of an indecent act by the young girl, he can be jailed up to five years and fined up to $10,000.
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