KUCHING: A 41-year-old man was sentenced to 34 years in prison and 24 strokes of the cane by the Sessions Court on Tuesday (Feb 3) after being found guilty of sexually assaulting his stepdaughter on two separate occasions in 2022 and 2023.
Judge Hakim Musli Abdul Hamid ordered the prison sentences to run consecutively, starting from Tuesday.
The man was convicted on two charges under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 (SOACA), punishable under Section 14 and read together with Section 16(1) of the same act.
For the first charge, he was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment and 10 strokes of the cane under Section 14(a) of SOACA 2017, with an additional two years’ imprisonment and two strokes under Section 16 of the same act.
For the second charge, he received another 15 years’ imprisonment and 10 strokes under Section 14(a), plus an additional two years’ imprisonment and two strokes under Section 16(1).
The judge found the accused guilty after determining that the defence failed to raise reasonable doubt at the end of its case.
Pursuant to Section 26(1) of SOACA 2017, the accused must undergo rehabilitative counseling during his prison term and will be subject to police supervision for two years after his release.
According to the facts of the case, the 15-year-old victim lived with her mother and stepfather (the accused).
The first incident occurred in the early morning of December 2022 at their home in Petra Jaya. The accused entered the victim’s bedroom, woke her, and instructed her to follow him to his room. After locking the door, he forced himself on her by kissing her lips and touching her private parts.
The victim objected, stating she was afraid her mother would find out. The accused ignored her, saying her mother would never know as long as she remained silent. After the assault, he told her to leave.
In April 2023, a teacher noticed scars on the victim’s wrists. During a private conversation, the victim disclosed she was under emotional distress due to her stepfather and revealed the sexual assault. The teacher advised her to report it to her mother, but the victim refused, fearing her mother would not believe her.
The second incident occurred on Aug 5, 2023, at 8am, where the accused repeated the same acts. Two days later, the teacher again noticed the victim was in distress. The victim revealed the ongoing abuse, prompting the teacher to contact her mother.
In the teacher’s presence, the mother was informed of the assaults. However, she did not believe her daughter and sided with the accused. A confrontation ensued, and the accused chased the victim out of the house.
The victim then sought refuge at her grandmother’s house, where she told her grandmother and aunt what had happened. Her aunt immediately took her to Sarawak General Hospital for a medical examination and subsequently lodged a police report.
The prosecution was handled by deputy public prosecutor Asmawi Nur Haqim Mokthar while the accused was represented by counsel Arthur Liang Dawat.
