Kota Kinabalu: A 46-year-old man who raped his stepdaughter was jailed 13 years and ordered to get a stroke of the cane.
Sessions Court Judge Noor Hafizah Mohd Salim meted out the sentence to the man after ruling that the prosecution had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt, Wednesday.
The court ordered the man to serve the jail sentence from the date of his arrest on Nov 10, 2020.
He was found guilty of raping the 12-year-old girl at 2am on March 15, 2020 in a house in Tuaran.
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During mitigation, counsel Nabila Norsahar asked for leniency saying that it was the man’s first offence.
Nabila said the man needed to support his family.
However, Deputy Public Prosecutor Dacia Jane Romanus urged the court to impose a deterrent sentence on the grounds that the victim was the man’s stepdaughter.
She also submitted that the court should consider the seriousness and rampancy of the sexual offences, especially in Sabah.
Six prosecution and two defence witnesses testified during the hearing.
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