A taxi driver convicted of raping a female passenger at knifepoint was sentenced to 20 years behind bars Monday as a Brooklyn judge brushed aside pleas from his lawyer to delay sentencing so the yellow cab driver could see a psychologist for his “sex addiction” and prosecutors read an impassioned statement from his victim.
Gurmeet Singh, 43, was convicted May 2 of rape and kidnapping for attacking the young woman while driving her from Williamsburg to her East Village apartment in May 2011.
In a sidebar with prosecutors and the judge, defense attorney Colin Moore could be heard asking for sentencing to be pushed back so he could have time to hire a forensic psychologist to examine Singh for “sex addiction” and saying, “We think this is one of the factors that your honor should consider.”
But Brooklyn Supreme Court Judge Miriam Cyrulnik rejected his request on the record, saying, “You’ve had two years to consider retaining such an expert.”
Prosecutors read aloud a moving statement from Singh’s victim — who moved to California after the attack but returned to testify against him.
“Waking up on the side of a highway with a man straddling me with a knife to my throat was terrifying. I can still hear Mr. Singh asking me if I wanted to live,” the woman said in the statement.
“Mr. Singh, you may have bound and gagged me but I am the one who is free and speaking now. You may have had a knife, but because of my bravery you will be serving time.”
The remorseless Singh — who spent the entire court proceeding with his head down — declined to make any statement or apology for his action.
During his statement, defense attorney Moore made the questionable claim that Singh had always followed the law except for patronizing prostitutes.
About a dozen of Singh’s friends and family members crowded the courtroom for the sentencing.
Singh was busted by clever cops who collected his DNA from a water glass he used during a meeting with officers posing as taxi inspectors in May 2012.