'We will sue him until he goes bankrupt': Victim's mother plans to sue ex-actor Ian Fang, Entertainment News
In the case of former artist Ian Fang sexually assaulting a girl, the victim's mother bluntly said that the sentence given to Fang was too light.
The 35-year-old fomer MediaCorp artist was sentenced to 40 months' jail after he pleaded guilty to having sex with the girl before she turned 16.
He had sex with the teen on nine occasions between June and July 2024, mostly unprotected.
She eventually contracted human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually-transmitted disease.
Chinese-language media outlet 8world spoke exclusively with the victim's mother, who agreed to a five-hour interview under the condition of anonymity.
She expressed strong dissatisfaction with the court's verdict and urged the authorities to review the case, calling for a harsher sentence, including caning, to prevent Fang from harming other women in the future.
Fang was charged under Section 376A(2)(b) of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years' imprisonment or a fine, or both — but does not include caning.
Fang was not caned as the victim was 15 at the time of the offences. The verdict might have been different if she had been below 14, as he would have been charged for rape.
Under Section 375 of the Penal Code, those convicted of rape could be jailed for between eight and 20 years, and receive at least 12 strokes of the cane.
Fang, the mother alleged, used his celebrity status and position of trust to take advantage of her.
"The age gap between them was significant, and Fang used his celebrity status to manipulate her into bed," she said.
"The first time, he brought wine to the hotel to visit my daughter while she was unwell, raped her and afterwards told her not to tell us — warning that he could go to jail if anyone found out. He knew exactly what he was doing was wrong," she added.
"He had an ulterior motive every time they met. If that's not exploitation, then what is?" she questioned.
"I just can't accept it. He manipulated and coerced my child," she said.
She was equally firm in her view of the sentence: "I'm very, very dissatisfied. He should have been caned. At least then there would be a lasting mark - something to remind him, and others, of what he did. Now, there's nothing. No consequence that stops him from doing this again."
The mother also questioned why a gag order had initially been imposed on Fang's identity.
She believed revealing his name could have encouraged other potential victims to step forward.
"There might be more victims out there," she said.
She accused Fang of ruining her daughter's life and infecting her with a sexually transmitted disease.
"I'm going to sue him until he goes bankrupt," she declared.
"Her first time should have been with someone who truly loved her — not someone like him. He's a predator. A wolf in sheep's clothing," she said.
She has since hired a lawyer to begin civil proceedings: "Yes, civil suits are about compensation. But this isn't about the money. I want to sue him until he's bankrupt."
If any damages are awarded, she added, the entire sum would be donated to charity: "We don't want a cent of his money."
[[nid:718288]]
This article was first published in The New Paper. Permission required for reproduction.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
36 minutes ago
- CNA
Nigeria jails 15 Asians for internet scams
LAGOS: A Nigerian court jailed 15 Asians on Friday (May 30) for "cyber-terrorism and internet fraud", the national anti-graft agency said, one of the largest such cases in the country. Eleven Filipinos, two Chinese, one Malaysian and one Indonesian were sentenced to one year in prison and a fine of one million naira (about US$630) each in the commercial capital, Lagos, after pleading guilty, said Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) spokesman Dele Oyewale. They were accused of recruiting young Nigerians for "identity theft and to hold themselves out as persons of foreign nationality". "The judges also ordered that the devices recovered from the convicts be forfeited to the federal government of Nigeria," Oyewale said. Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is saddled with a reputation for internet fraudsters known in local slang as "Yahoo Boys". The EFCC has busted several hideouts where young criminals learn their scams. Cybercrime experts also warn that foreign "cybercrime syndicates" have set up shop in the country to exploit its weak cybersecurity systems. The EFCC said foreign gangs recruited Nigerian accomplices to find victims online through phishing scams, in which attackers typically try to deceive victims into transferring them money or revealing sensitive information such as passwords. The scams target mostly Americans, Canadians, Mexicans and Europeans, the agency said. In December, the EFCC arrested 792 suspects in a single operation in the affluent Victoria Island area of Lagos. At least 192 of the suspects were foreign nationals –148 of them Chinese, the agency said.
New Paper
5 hours ago
- New Paper
May babies: Actress Grace Wong's daughter born in same month as her and husband
From now on, Hong Kong actress Grace Wong will be holding three birthday celebrations in the month of May. Wong, who turned 39 on May 5, announced on social media on May 29 the birth of her first child via natural delivery. Her non-celebrity husband Daniel Chang, also 39, was born on May 15. Wong wrote in Chinese: "I always thought I would be the kind of career woman who picked a date for a caesarean section and gave her baby formula milk. "But as I formed a relationship with my baby during the nine months of pregnancy, she seemed to tell me that I could do it. I did more research and wanted to give her the best within my capabilities." She thanked her doctor for giving her the confidence to change her choice of delivery method in the last four months of her pregnancy. "It really worked out in the end as our baby girl was born naturally," Wong wrote, revealing that her daughter's name is Audrey Chang. "She is very special as she arrived past 12am, so her birthday is next to her dad's birthday," she added. "I wonder if she will be a daddy's girl in the future." She thanked her husband for accompanying her throughout the journey and for being her biggest cheerleader, adding: "You're gonna be the best daddy." She also thanked the medical team at Hong Kong's Union Hospital. "We felt very loved and supported during our stay," she wrote in English. "Thanks for celebrating Danny's birthday and Mother's Day with me as well." Using hashtags such as #MayBabies, she added: "Off to a new season with our little one. We love you so much and can't wait to see you grow up." The first runner-up of the Miss Hong Kong pageant in 2007, Wong is best known for starring in the TVB martial arts drama A Fist Within Four Walls (2016). Her role as Fa Man was named Most Popular Female Character at the TVB Anniversary Awards in 2016. In 2016, she announced her engagement to Mr Chang, whom she had dated for 11 years. In 2017, they held two wedding ceremonies in the United States and Hong Kong. Wong announced in December 2021 that she was leaving TVB after 14 years with the Hong Kong broadcaster. She took part in Chinese dance survival show Great Dance Crew in 2022 and is also a singer now.
New Paper
5 hours ago
- New Paper
High Court upholds acquittal of Chinese company accused of bribing ex-LTA deputy group director
The High Court has upheld the acquittal of a Chinese company that was charged with bribery after two of its employees gave loans totalling $220,000 to a Land Transport Authority (LTA) deputy group director. In a written judgment on May 29, the court said there was insufficient evidence to show that the company's top management was aware of or somehow complicit in the illegal acts. The Singapore branch of China Railway Tunnel Group was first acquitted of three corruption charges by a district judge in March 2024 on grounds that the two employees' acts could not be attributed to the company. Xi Zhengbing, who was the general manager and head representative of the branch, and Zhou Zhenghe, who was a deputy general manager, gave the loans to Henry Foo Yung Thye between January 2018 and August 2019. The district judge said Xi did not have a sufficiently high level in the chain of command. The Singapore branch is only one of the sub-departments within the company's overseas department, which is in turn only one department in the company's corporate structure. The prosecution appealed to the High Court against the acquittal. On May 29, the appeal was dismissed by a panel comprising Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, Justice Tay Yong Kwang and Justice Andrew Phang. The court also noted that Xi and Zhou had resorted to defrauding the company with false invoices to obtain the $200,000 that was given to Foo as loans in 2018. Zhou then had to borrow $20,000 to provide the subsequent loan. "All these showed clearly that the respondent was never involved in its employees' illegal activities and neither did it give its tacit approval (nor) pretend to be ignorant of what the Singapore branch's employees were doing," said the court. In September 2021, Foo, then 47, was sentenced to 5½ years' jail for taking about $1.24 million in bribes in the form of loans from contractors and sub-contractors. Foo, who resigned from LTA in September 2019, was also ordered to pay a penalty of about $1.16 million, equivalent to the amount he had not returned. Xi and Zhou were arrested in September 2019 by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau. After being released on bail, they absconded to China, where they were arrested and subsequently convicted by a Guangzhou court. Xi was sentenced to a five-year jail term and a fine of 300,000 yuan (S$57,400). Zhou was sentenced to two years' jail and a fine of 100,000 yuan. China Railway Tunnel Group has 24 branches, eight of which are overseas. The Singapore branch was a sub-contractor for two different projects on the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL), and was awarded the main contract for a project on the Circle Line. At the time of the offences, Foo was involved in the project management of the main contractors in respect of TEL projects. Between 2016 and 2019, he reached out to the company's employees, including Xi, to ask for loans. No loan was given as a result of Foo's first request. Subsequently, Xi agreed to give him a loan upon his second request in the hope that Foo would refer more job opportunities to the company. Zhou then arranged for false invoices to be issued to the company and prepared supporting documents with forged signatures. These documents were presented to the company's finance department, which disbursed the payment. After receiving the money, Xi and Zhou passed $200,000 to Foo. In 2019, Foo made a third request. Xi agreed to give him another loan, in the hope that Foo would expedite the company's payment claims and help the company to win the tender for another project. On Xi's instructions, Zhou borrowed $20,000 from a friend and passed the money to Foo. The prosecution alleged that in 2016, Mr Liu Chenyu, who was based in China, was told of the discussions to pay Foo a bribe and approved his request for a loan. Mr Liu was then the deputy general manager of the company's overseas department, which was in charge of all the overseas branches. The prosecution presented text messages, including one from another employee of the Singapore branch telling Foo that Mr Liu was grateful for his support. But the High Court panel said the prosecution had not presented the necessary evidence to prove that Mr Liu was involved. The messages did not prove that Foo's request for a loan was actually conveyed to Mr Liu, said the judges. Lawyer Paul Loy of WongPartnership, who acts for the company, said his client will continue to respect the laws of countries in which it operates.
