PUTRAJAYA: An odd job worker who raped a 15-year-old girl in a hut of an oil palm plantation and telephoned seven of his friends to come to the hut to rape her after raping her, had his jail term enhanced by the Court of Appeal here to 14 years and ordered to be whipped three times.
Federal Court Judge Datuk Jeffrey Tan Kok Wha chairing the three-member panel said the sentence of seven years’ jail meted out by the Sungai Petani Sessions Court on Mohd Muhsinun Wahab, 26, was manifestly inadequate.
“A young girl was raped not only by one (person) but by many others, all because of the accused. Even without the others, the sentence appears to be manifestly inadequate given the trauma inflicted by the accused on the victim which would go with her for the rest of her life,” he said.
Justice Tan said the court felt that it (the court) had no alternative but to enhance the sentence.
Referring to Mohd Muhsinun’s plea for leniency citing that he was a first offender, the judge (Justice Tan) said there was no such thing as “free ride” for a first offender.
“Rape is heinous offence. Public interest always demands a stern sentence,” said Tan, who presided on the panel with Court of Appeal judges Datuk Mohtaruddin Baki and Datuk Mah Weng Kwai.
The panel had invoked Section 60 (2) of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964 and Section 316 of the Criminal Procedure Code to enhance the jail sentence.
The court ordered Muhsinun to serve his jail term from yesterday. He was on bail of RM15,000 with one surety pending his appeal.
Muhsinun was sentenced to seven years jail by the Sessions Court on April 11, 2011 and his appeal against conviction and sentence was dismissed by the Alor Setar High Court on Feb 21, last year.
He was accused of committing the offence in a hut at an oil palm plantation in the Kulim district at 8pm on oct 5, 2008.
The public prosecutor was unable to frame charges against the other assailants as the victim could not positively identify the youths.
The facts of the case revealed that the girl went to a shopping complex with her friend. She then asked her adoptive brother to come to fetch her back home and he came with the accused on two motorcycles.
While her adoptive brother sent the victim’s friend home, the accused brought the victim to the oil palm plantation and raped her there.
After raping her, he made telephone calls to seven of his friends to go to the oil palm plantation to rape the victim. While sending her home, Muhsinun raped her again on a bridge. A friend of the victim’s brother found her in a dishevelled state at a jetty and sent her home.
The victim told her elder sister about it and she (elder sister) and her elder brother and the victim went to the police station where she (the victim) lodged a report. — Bernama