Kota Kinabalu: A 47-year-old man was charged with raping his underage neighbour, three years ago.
The man pleaded not guilty before Sessions Court Judge Elsie Primus on Thursday.
He is accused of raping the 12 years and eight months old girl at 10am on May 8, 2020 at a house in a village in Kota Marudu.
The offence under Section 376(2)(d) of the Penal Code carries a jail term of up to 20 years, and whipping, on conviction.
The court released the man on a bail of RM15,000 with RM10,000 deposited in two local sureties.
The court also imposed several additional terms, namely he was prohibited from entering the village where the alleged victim is living, not to tamper with the prosecution witnesses, report to Kota Marudu police station twice a month and will be revised after six months.
The man was also ordered to surrender his international passport, if any, to the court until the disposal of his case.
The court set April 13 this year for pre-trial case management.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Mas Izzaty Lokman appeared for the prosecution while the man was not represented.
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