Reported Cases of Serious Sexual Crimes

Ms Sylvia Lim asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs with regard to Police investigations into reports of serious sexual crimes handled by the Criminal Investigation Department in the last three years (a) of the cases charged in Court, what is the median time which elapsed between the making of the Police report and the completion of investigations such that the prosecution is ready to proceed; and (b) what percentage of reports is not prosecuted in Court and for what offence types.

There were about 180 reported cases of serious sexual crimes, that is, rape and sexual assault by penetration cases, a year for the period 2011-2013. These resulted in close to 30 criminal charges being filed against sex offenders each year. For the remaining cases, depending on the findings of investigations, the outcome may be a stern warning in lieu of prosecution or no further action taken against the defendant.

On average, Police require about 12 months to conclude investigations into such crimes. However, the actual length of investigations may differ based on the complexity of each case.