S’pore PR who raped intoxicated woman on office floor after company dinner jailed 11.5 years
A Malaysian air-conditioning contractor who got drunk at a company dinner raped a woman who had passed out in the office after drinking heavily.
The victim later realised something was wrong when she regained consciousness. After reviewing CCTV footage, she reported the incident to the police.
The offender, 37-year-old Malaysian national Beh Kien Tai, faced two charges each of rape and outrage of modesty.
According to Lianhe Zaobao, he pleaded guilty to one charge of rape and one charge of outrage of modesty on July 23. Two remaining charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.
He was sentenced to 11 years and six months’ jail, as well as nine strokes of the cane.
Man and victim attended company dinner
The victim, who was 39 at the time of the offence, worked as a project manager. A gag order prohibits the publication of any information that could identify her.
According to court documents, Beh had been working as an air-conditioning contractor for the interior design firm since 2021.
The victim had previously worked part-time as a sales assistant at the company around 2014, and remained friends with its female owner after leaving.
On Jan 13, 2023, the owner hosted a company dinner, inviting the victim, employees, contractors, and suppliers to the office.
Falls asleep in office
The victim reportedly consumed a significant amount of beer and wine during the gathering. When the owner noticed she was intoxicated, she and several female guests looked after her before letting her rest on the floor on the first level of the office, where a blanket and pillow had been laid out.
The dinner ended at about 1.30am on Jan 14, 2023.
Beh, who was also intoxicated after drinking beer and wine, declined a guest’s offer to drive him home. He insisted that he would rest there before driving himself home.
He then went upstairs to sleep on a bed in a loft on the second floor.
Before leaving the premises, the owner switched on the loft’s air-conditioning and closed the door separating the loft from the office area.
Man rapes sleeping woman on office floor
At about 3am, Beh came downstairs and saw the victim asleep on the office floor. After stepping over her to use the toilet, he returned and lay down beside her.
Between 3.02am and 3.21am, Beh pulled down the victim’s pants and underwear, molested her breasts and private parts, and raped her repeatedly without using a condom.
After the assault, he dressed the victim again before leaving the office at about 3.38am.
When the victim woke up, she sensed that something was amiss and texted the company owner about what happened.
The owner saw the message later that morning, reviewed the CCTV footage, and sent screenshots to the victim.
The victim lodged a police report that evening.
Victim suffered severe emotional trauma, prosecution says
Beh was arrested at his home in the early hours of Jan 15, 2023 and has remained in remand since.
The prosecution said Beh knew the victim was heavily intoxicated and took advantage of her while she was asleep. It also noted that he did not use a condom during the rape, exposing her to the risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.
The victim suffered severe emotional and psychological trauma, and was left feeling confused and fearful after the incident, prosecutors said.
They sought a sentence of between 11 years and three months, and 11 years and nine months’ jail, along with nine strokes of the cane.
In mitigation, Beh’s lawyer argued that the offence was not premeditated, appealing for a lighter sentence.
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