Rapist who defecated in court gets additional jail time as he is unfit for caning
File photo of the Supreme Court in Singapore (Photo: Jeremy Long)
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SINGAPORE: A convicted rapist who made headlines for
defecating in his pants in court was given an additional year's jail in lieu of caning on Monday (Jul 20) after he was found unfit for the corporal punishment.
Isham Kayubi, who turned 50 last month, had been sentenced to 32 years' jail and 24 strokes of the cane in February.
He had been convicted of four charges of rape and two charges of sexual assault against two 14-year-old girls, after claiming trial.
READ: Man who defecated in court gets jail and caning for raping two 14-year-old girls
The former part-time food delivery driver had lured the two girls on separate occasions to his house on false pretences, where he raped them, forced them to fellate him and filmed the process.
However, Isham was certified by a medical officer in May to be unfit for caning, due to "age-related degenerative changes of the spine", the court heard.
As the 24 strokes of the cane could not be carried out, the prosecution asked for an additional term of 12 months' jail in lieu of caning.
This is in line with indicative guidelines set out by the court, which recommended nine to 12 months' jail in situations when more than 19 strokes of the cane are to be avoided.
In pushing for this term, Deputy Public Prosecutors James Chew and Jane Lim highlighted that rape is "a grave and atrocious offence", with two young victims in Isham's case.
He had also threatened to harm the two girls, recorded some of sexual assaults on his phone and committed similar offences in the past, targeting young girls and sexually exploiting them.
Isham pleaded for leniency, saying that it was not his fault that he could not be caned. If he was allowed to be caned, he would opt for caning, he added.
Justice See Kee Oon found that there were grounds to enhance the sentence and increased it by a year as requested by the prosecution. In total, Isham will now serve 33 years in jail.
He had delayed court proceedings more than once, by defecating in his pants on the way out of court in January before smearing it on his shirt.
He also wiped some of it on a glass panel separating him from the court interpreter.
In August last year, he urinated and flashed his penis in court, but psychiatric assessments later found him to be mentally sound.