By Dorcas Ting
KUCHING, May 19: An oil palm plantation worker is sentenced to a total of 15 years in prison and 4 strokes of the cane by the Sessions Court here today for committing sexual abuse against his grandniece who was 4-year-old then.
The 44-year-old man pleaded guilty to two charges brought against him under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act (SOACA) 2017, punishable under Section 14 and read together with Section 16 of the same Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment. The charges were read in conjunction with Section 14 of the same act and Section 16 of the same act.
Section 14 of the SOACA 2017 provides for a maximum prison term of 20 years and caning, while Section 16 of the SOACA 2017 carries a maximum prison term of five years and at least two strokes of the cane upon conviction.
Sessions Court Judge Maris Agan ordered the accused, who resides in Simunjan, to be sentenced to seven years in prison and two strokes of the cane for the first charge, and eight years in prison and two strokes of the cane for the second charge.
Maris ordered both prison sentences to be served concurrently, with effect from today.
The accused was firstly accused of physically sexually assaulting the four-year-old female victim for sexual purposes at the victim’s house in Simunjan, in early December 2019, by touching her private part.
The second charge involved the accused repeating the same act against the same victim on May 13, 2023, around 3pm at the same location. However, this time, the accused hugged, kissed the victim’s cheek, and touched her private part.
The victim is eight years old this year.
Based on the facts of the case, when the victim was alone at home on May 13, the accused, who is the victim’s granduncle, visited and claimed he wanted to use the toilet. While the victim was standing in the living room, the accused suddenly hugged her from behind, touched her body, kissed her face, and put his hand into her pants to touch her private part.
The victim resisted by pushing the accused’s hand away.
Subsequently, the victim immediately grabbed a hammer to defend herself, forcing the accused to leave the house.
The victim then reported the incident to her 26-year-old mother, who subsequently lodged a police report.
Investigations revealed that during the incident, the victim’s family, including her mother, was not at home as they were attending a religious ceremony at their relative’s house.
During the investigation, the victim also revealed another incident that occurred in early December 2019, when the accused inserted his hand into the victim’s pants and touched her private part while she was sleeping in the living room of the same house. The victim was four years old then.
The prosecution was conducted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Ruvinasini Pandian, while the accused was not represented by counsel. — DayakDaily
