Kota Kinabalu: A 40-year-old technician who raped and committed physical sexual harassment against his daughter with his second wife, was jailed 13 years and ordered given 12 strokes of the cane.
Sessions Court Judge Noor Hafizah Mohd Salim meted out the sentence to the man who pleaded guilty, to two charges against him on Friday.
On the first count, he was jailed eight years plus 10 strokes of the cane for raping the 14-year and three-month-old girl at night in February this year in the living room of a house in Papar.
The offence under Section 376(3) of the Penal Code provides for a jail term of between eight and 30 years, and whipping at least 10 strokes, on conviction.
On the second count, he was jailed three years for fondling the daughter’s breasts for sexual purpose at the same place and time.
The offence under Section 14 (a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 carries a jail term of up to 20 years and whipping, upon conviction.
Due to the relationship between the man and the girl, there was additional punishment against the man. The court imposed two years’ jail plus two strokes of the cane.
The court ordered the man to serve the jail sentence consecutively from the date of his arrest.
The man was also to undergo rehabilitative counselling while in prison and to be placed under police supervision for three years after release from prison.
During mitigation, the unrepresented man asked for leniency saying that he was remorseful and regretted his wrongdoing.
The man, who has five children, told the court that he wished to meet his family and children.
However, Deputy Public Prosecutor Eugenie A. Gilbert prayed for the heaviest sentence to be meted out to the man by taking into consideration the nature of the offence, which was sexual, the age of the victim below the age of majority at the time of incident, in which in this case she is a child victim, the manner and circumstances of the offence.
Eugenie further submitted that the crime committed by the man against the victim was a heinous crime.
“He had inflicted perpetual pain upon the victim and destroyed her self-worth.
“Therefore, a reasonable punishment besides imprisonment is to impose whipping as a deterrent to the accused and potential sexual offenders, preventing them from committing sexual crimes.
“The court needs to act firmly by demonstrating disapproval and acknowledging that offences of this nature are grave and serious.
“Those who engage in such offences should anticipate the heaviest sentence.
“The court has a duty to protect the community from the tendency to commit crimes like these, which can be dangerous and disrupt the harmony of society,” said Eugenie.
The court heard that the incident happened during the Chinese New Year school holidays while the victim was sleeping in the living room of the house.
Investigation revealed that the father went to the living room and committed the offences against her.
The daughter could not do anything and did not scream because she was afraid.
As a result of the accused’s actions, the victim experienced depression and felt stressed.
The man was arrested following a police report lodged by the victim against the father who committed the sexual harassment.