The Singapore government’s Attorney General Chambers (AGC) today (Mar 8) announced that they rejected caning or any appeal to convicted pedophile, Joshua Robinson, who was found guilty of sexual penetration of two 15-year-olds and showing a 6-year-old pornography.
AGC said that due to legal technicalities, no caning is allowed:
“While some have called for caning to be imposed on Robinson, the offences he was charged with did not allow the court to do so. Statutory rape only applies to victims who have not turned 14, which was not the case in Robinson’s offences. And because both girls had consented to these sexual acts, an offence of rape could not be pressed against Robinson. The most serious offence that Robinson had committed was sexual penetration of a minor under 16 years old, and that did not provide for caning”
In 2015, 39-year-old American Robinson filmed himself having sex with a 15-year-old and the girl later reported him to the police. The police found 321 videos of child pornography, with children aged between 2 to 16.
The Singapore court sentenced him to a 4-year jail sentence, which sparked an outrage among Singaporeans questioning why is there no caning. The ruling further fortified the common perception that the Singapore court punishes Singaporeans heavier than foreigners, and that the court is biased.