KOTA KINABALU: A local man failed in his appeal for a reduction of his 26 years’ jail sentence on three counts of rape and attempted rape of a minor at the Court of Appeals here yesterday.
Justices Datuk Mohd Hishamudin Mohd Yunus, Datuk Azahar Mohamed and Datuk Yusof Haji Wahi unanimously dismissed the appeal by Pielis Sami, 28, after hearing submissions from the latter’s counsel, Datuk Chau Chin Tang, and reply from deputy public prosecutor Jamil Aripin.
The Sessions Court had on October 9, 2010 sentenced Pielis to four years’ jail for the first charge of attempting to rape a 15-year-old girl in front of a jetty in Beaufort at 8pm on March 7, 2010.
On the second charge, Pielis was jailed for another 11 years for raping the girl at a railway coach at the railway station in Beaufort at about 9pm on the same day.
Meanwhile, for the third charge of raping the same girl at another railway coach about 11pm on the same day, Pielis received 11 years.
The lower court ordered the custodial sentences to run consecutively.
Pielis filed an appeal against the Sessions Court’s decision to the High Court but it was also dismissed when his appeal was heard on February 16, this year.
Earlier, Chau submitted to the court that the sentence imposed by the lower court was too excessive.
He also submitted that the High Court had erred in filing to give any consideration to the undisputed facts that both the appellant and the victim were lovers and the sexual intercourse was consensual.
In his rebuttal, Jamil urged the court not to disturb the sentence handed down by the Sessions Court as well as the decision of the High Court to affirm the sentence.
He submitted among others that the sentence imposed by the Sessions Court was not excessive and the High Court was not wrong in affirming the sentencing.
Jamil pointed out that it supports the objective of the government in preventing the case of young victims being influenced by adults in sexual activities.
He stressed that the appellant and the victim were not lovers and the latter did not consent to the act of the appellant.