A former mosque caretaker and a cleaner in Melaka stunned many, including the judge, for allegedly having intercourse in a mosque’s mortuary room.
In fact, the details of the case were so shocking that the judge had to issue a rare rebuke to the duo before handing down their sentence.
Had sex inside mortuary room
According to the charge sheet, Mohd Rafi Abu Samah and Norhaslinda Hashim committed illicit sexual acts several times in the mortuary room of Masjid Al-Ibadah in Kampung Bukit Piatu between January and April.
On top of that, neither of them were legally married to each other under Islamic law.
Facts of the case also stated that police handed the pair over to the Melaka Islamic Religious Department’s enforcement division at 4.30pm on June 4 after a police report was lodged over an alleged rape.
However, subsequent police investigations found that the acts were consensual and repeated.
Judge rebukes couple
Mohd Rafi and Norhaslinda pleaded guilty to charges framed under Section 52 of the Syariah Offences Enactment (State of Melaka) 1991, which carries a maximum fine of RM5,000, imprisonment of up to three years, or both, upon conviction.
Their offence was described as “serious” by Judge Mawardi Che Man, who highlighted the fact that they had sex in a location designated for preparing the deceased for burial.
He also added that though the mortuary room was separate from the main prayer hall, it was still within sacred mosque grounds dedicated to final cleansing rites before burial.
“This is where the deceased undergo their final cleansing before burial. Instead, a grave sin was committed there.
You are lucky you did not end up as corpses while committing the act. Otherwise, you could have been washed there straight away,” he said.
Both Mohd Rafi and Norhaslinda were fined RM5,000 each in default of 18 months in jail.
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