KUCHING: An unemployed man has been sentenced to a total of 30 years’ imprisonment and eight strokes of the cane for sexually assaulting two minors in separate incidents in 2023 and this year.
Sessions Court Judges Iris Awen Jon and Noor Hisham Mohd Jaafar handed the penalty after the 69-year-old pleaded guilty to two charges read separately before the court.
On the first charge, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison and four strokes of the cane under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, punishable under the same section.
On the second, he was also handed a sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment and four strokes of the cane under Section 14(a) of the same Act.
The court ordered both sentences to run consecutively, bringing the total imprisonment to 30 years, along with eight strokes of the cane.
The man was also ordered to undergo counselling during his incarceration.
In addition, on the first charge, the court ordered him placed under police supervision for two years upon completion of his sentence pursuant to Section 27 of the Act.
On the second charge, he was ordered to undergo a further three years of police supervision under Section 27(1) of the same Act, to commence immediately after completing his prison term.
In total, he will be under police supervision for five years after serving his sentence.
According to the facts of the case, the first offence took place on Aug 20, 2023, at about 4 pm at a house in Kampung Panglima Seman Ulu, Petra Jaya, where the man committed a sexual act against an eight-year-old girl.
The second offence occurred on May 11 this year at around 4pm at the same location, involving a 12-year-old victim.
Investigations revealed that both victims knew the man, who would frequently visit their homes and offer to take them out for meals.
He allegedly used such inducements, including offering access to a mobile phone to watch social media applications such as TikTok and promises of outings, to lure the victims.
The victims later disclosed the incidents to a family member, prompting a police report to be lodged on May 11.
The man was subsequently arrested on May 14, by a team from the Kuching District Police Headquarters Criminal Investigation Department.
Further investigation found that he had also warned the victims not to reveal the incidents to anyone.
Both victims were reported to be traumatised when recounting their experiences, with one still experiencing emotional distress from the earlier incident.
The prosecution was conducted by Deputy Public Prosecutors Chuah Kai Sheng and Adriana Maisarah Mohd Farid, while the man was not represented.
