SAMARAHAN: A 52-year-old male teacher was sentenced to 12 years’ jail and six strokes of the cane by the Sessions Court here after being convicted of sexually abusing an 11-year-old female student.
Judge Shafiza Datu Abdul Razak handed down the sentence after the defence failed to raise reasonable doubt at the close of their case today.
The offence took place at a primary school in Kota Samarahan in May 2022.
The accused, who held a position of trust as a teacher, was found guilty of touching the child’s private parts.
He was charged under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, read together with Section 16 of the same Act.
During the proceedings, defence counsel Christopher Bada requested a stay of execution of the sentence pending appeal, citing the accused’s need to work as an e-hailing driver to support his family and his medical condition of hypertension.
The court rejected the application, noting there were no special circumstances to justify a stay.
“Section 311 of the Criminal Procedure Code clearly provides that an appeal cannot be used as a reason to delay the execution of a decision. Since no special circumstances were presented, the court dismisses the application,” said Shafiza.
The prosecution called 15 witnesses, while the defence called only the accused himself.
The case was prosecuted by Investigating Officer, Margaret Ena Mihos, on behalf of Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohamad Aiman Mutallib Mohamad Shariff.
