Kota Kinabalu: A 37-year-old man was charged with committing physical sexual harassment against his stepdaughter.
The general worker pleaded not guilty before Sessions Court Judge Elsie Primus.
He is accused of committing the offence against the 14-year-old girl by touching her private parts at 11am in Sept 2021 at a house in Penampang.
The offence under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act (SOACA) 2017 provides for a jail term of up to 20 years and whipping, on conviction.
Due the relationship with the girl, there is additional punishment under Section 16(1) of the SOACA which carries a jail term of up to five years and whipping of at least two strokes.
The court set Nov 3 this year for pre-trial case management and released the man on bail of RM10,000 with RM5,000 deposited in two local sureties.
The court also ordered the man to report to Penampang police station once a month and his passport if any, to be kept by the court until the disposal of his case.
The man was also warned to not tamper or communicate with any prosecution witnesses especially the alleged victim.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Nurul Shafeerah Mad Iskim appeared for the prosecution while the man was represented by counsel Yong Pei Yi and Dicky Lo.
