KUALA LUMPUR: More than half of the rape cases reported in the country over the past three years involved victims aged between 13 and 15.
More alarmingly, only about 10% of the reported statutory rapes were “forced” on the minors. The rest were “consensual”.
Bukit Aman Sexual, Women and Child Investigation Division’s assistant principal director Asst Comm Jenny Ong Chin Lan said it was also distressing to find that some of the girls involved were “proud” to be prizes for Mat Rempits who won illegal motorcycle races.
Citing the case of a 16-year-old girl who was disowned by her family and taken in by the Welfare Department, she said: “She admitted having sex with several youths, saying she liked the thrill of the Mat Rempit lifestyle,”“These kids make poor choices. More often than not, they get no proper care or attention from their family so they opt for love from their peers.
“If their peers are wild, then they will most likely turn out the same way too,” she told The Star.
Statutory rapes accounted for 1,424 out of the 2,767 rapes reported in 2013 while 1,243 of 2,349 cases recorded in 2014 involved minors.
This year, 920 statutory rapes were reported out of 1,794 cases recorded as of October.