A Singapore man pleaded guilty Monday to having sex with a 14-year-old girl and helping her abort their unborn baby.
Yahoo News reports Leon Yap, 23, was sentenced to 16 months in jail for having sex with the minor three times last year. He also pleaded guilty to unrelated charges of taking videos up women’s skirts.
According to the report, Yap and the 14-year-old girl, whose name the court withheld, met online through the dating site OKCupid in May 2017. The girl reportedly told Yap that she was 15.
Between May and June, they met at least three times and had consensual sex, the report states. When the girl became pregnant, her unborn child became another victim of abortion.
On June 26, the girl tested herself with a pregnancy test kit as she missed her period. She tested positive for pregnancy.
She told Yap about it and he found a clinic for her where she was scheduled for an abortion on July 3. They split the abortion bill – which was not stated in court papers – equally.
On June 29, her family found a receipt for the pregnancy kit in her wallet. She then admitted that she had sex with Yap. A police report was lodged.
“The victim subsequently underwent an abortion in July 2017 and the product of conception was tested and DNA comparison indicated that the accused was the father,” said [Deputy Public Prosecutor Chee Ee Ling].
Chee said the girl suffered a “high degree of exploitation and harm,” partially through the psychological trauma of aborting her unborn baby.
In this case, it appears that the girl and her abuser agreed together to abort their unborn baby. However, as young as she was, it is difficult to believe the girl fully understood her actions or the consequences.
An abortion not only kills an unborn child, it also carries risks of physical and psychological problems, including depression, anxiety, substance abuse and suicidal tendencies.
Studies also indicate that women and girls in abusive situations – including many human trafficking victims – often feel pressured to have abortions. Perpetrators use abortion to cover up their crime, destroy the child’s life who they have created and continue abusing their victims. Some even commit more violence against the woman and her unborn baby when the woman refuses to have an abortion.
