Farmer pleads not guilty to raping daughter
Published on: Thursday, May 23, 2019
By: Jo Ann Mool
KOTA KINABALU: A 53-year-old local farmer was charged in the Sessions Court here Wednesday with raping his 16-year-old daughter in Kota Belud.
The man, who was brought before Judge Elsie Primus, pleaded not guilty to committing the crime between Feb 2 this year and April the same year in a car at a roadside of a village in Kota Belud.
ADVERTISEMENT
Deputy Public Prosecutor Rustam Sanip did not offer bail as the offence committed is nonbailable beside the relationship between the accused and the alleged victim, who were father and daughter.
DPP Rustam also believed that both the accused and his daughter were living together.
The man, who was not represented, requested for bail and told the court that he would be staying outside their house and would not be any contact with his daughter.
Elsie denied him bail due to their relationship.
ADVERTISEMENT
She fixed June 24 for case management and two days trial on Sept 19 and 20 this year.
According to DPP Rustam, the prosecution has around 11 witnesses.
ADVERTISEMENT
The man was charged under Section 376(3) of the Penal Code which carries a jail term of between eight years and 30 years and whipping not less than 10 times on conviction.
Meanwhile, the court adjourned to June 19 the fact and sentencing of a self-employed, who still maintained his guilty plea of having two live pangolins, a protected animal, two years ago.
Elsie set the date for Choo Yau Hock for the plea bargaining process between his counsel and the prosecution.
Wednesday was set for facts and sentencing but counsel Luke Ressa Balang informed the court that he needed time in regard of the plea bargaining.
The prosecuting officer from the Wildlife Department Abdul Karim Dakog had objected for application by saying that it was a direct forward case and that there was no need to do so to save the court’s and the prosecution’s time.
Choo, 58, admitted to an alternative charge of having the pangolins (Manis Javanica), a protected animal as listed in Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997, without having valid authorisation from the Wildlife Director.
The offence was committed at 4.10pm on Feb 28, 2017, in a house at Jalan Mawas, Taman Foh Sang, Luyang.
The alternative charge under Section 40 of the Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997 is punishable under Section 40(3) of the same Enactment which carries a fine of up to RM50,000 or up to two years jail or both on conviction.
Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
Daily Express Malaysia
