By Dorcas Ting
KUCHING, June 24: The Court of Appeal today set aside the High Court’s decision to jail a 44-year-old man for 50 years on two counts of having sexual intercourse with his then 16-year-old daughter six years ago.
Instead, the appellate court upheld the decision of the Sessions Courts to jail the man 25 years with 12 strokes of rotan for each of the two charges framed under Section 376B(1) of the Penal Code. The Sessions Court had ordered that the imprisonment terms run concurrently.
Dissatisfied with the decision, the prosecution appealed to the High Court, which allowed the appeal and had the jail terms run consecutively.
The Court of Appeal’s decision means that the appellant, who had sex with his daughter in their house in Serian between Jan 2013 and December 2013, will only spend 25 years in jail.
But he will still be caned 24 times.
DPP Mohd Zain Ibrahim appeared for the respondent, while the appellant was not represented. — DayakDaily
