KUCHING: A 20-year-old was sentenced to a total of ten years imprisonment on two charges of raping a minor in 2023.
Sessions Court Judge Musli Ab Hamid on Monday sentenced the youthful offender to five years on the first count and another five years on the second.
He ordered both sentences to run concurrently from the date of sentencing.
Musli handed down the sentence after accepting the youth’s guilty plea and considering the probation report, recommendations from court advisers, as well as submissions from the prosecution.
The youth was convicted under Section 376(1) of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum imprisonment term of 20 years and whipping.
Taking into account the accused’s youth, public interest as well as a social report prepared by a Social Welfare Department officer, the court ruled that no whipping shall be imposed.
Pursuant to Section 26(1) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, the offender was ordered to undergo counselling during the period of detention.
Furthermore, under Section 27 of the same Act, he is to be placed under police supervision at the Serian police station for two years upon serving the prison sentence.
The first incident occurred in October 2023 at about 7:30am in the living room of a house in Kampung Sungai Turong, Serian. At that time, the victim was only 13.
The second incident took place in mid-December 2023 at approximately 8:30 am in a bedroom of the same house, when the victim had just turned 14.
The victim’s parents lodged a police report on August 23, 2024, upon discovering that a video of an inappropriate nature involving the victim and the offender had gone viral on messaging platforms such as Telegram and school Whatsapp groups.
The accused was also believed to have frequently disturbed the victim at her house while her parents were at work and while she was at school.
The victim had refused to attend school as a result of the incident.
The accused was arrested the following day in a fruit orchard area in Kampung Raeh, Serian. A mobile phone was seized as evidence.
Investigation revealed that the accused and the victim had engaged in sexual intercourse on both occasions, and it was understood that they had been in a relationship since April 2023 while attending the same school.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Asmawi Nur Haqim Mokhtar prosecuted the case.
The accused was not represented.
