Man jailed 13 years, ten strokes for raping daughter

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KOTA KINABALU: The Sessions Court here yesterday sentenced a local self-employed man to 13 years’ imprisonment with ten strokes of the cane for raping his own daughter while under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

Judge Azreena Aziz meted out the sentence on the 38-year-old man after he pleaded guilty to raping the 12-year-old girl at a house in a village in Beaufort on March 15, at around 6.30am.

The offence is framed under Section 376 (3) of the Penal Code which carries imprisonment of between eight years and 30 years, and whipping, upon conviction.

Based on the facts of the case, the accused had during investigations, admitted to drinking beer and consuming syabu prior to the incident.

The victim, in a written impact statement tendered to court, said she was raped multiple times by her father but could not remember the first occurrence.

She also mentioned having been raped by her grandfather when she was nine years old in 2010, whilst she and her two other siblings were under his care.

“After my grandfather passed way, my father then raped me instead. I regret being born into a world where I am a child to a father without conscience,” she said, adding that she faced suicidal thoughts due to this.

The victim, a student at a boarding school, had opened up to her two teachers about this incident, and with their help and the school principal, lodged a police report against the accused.

It was told in the case facts that the victim’s mother had left the victim and two other siblings to return to her home country, Indonesia.

The unrepresented accused had asked for a lenient sentence but deputy public prosecutor Chan Qin Ye urged for a deterrent, taking into consideration the victim’s impact statement, public interest and the seriousness of the offence.

In an unrelated case, an electrician faced a similar charge for raping his 12-year-old daughter at a house in Beaufort, on March 15, at around 10pm.

The 49-year-old accused pleaded guilty to the charge before judge Dean Wayne Daly who had adjourned sentencing pending the victim’s medical report and impact statement.

Deputy public prosecutor Nartiah F Mirchelle Sambatan objected bail for the accused, taking into account the father-daughter relationship shared between the accused and victim.

The court then ordered for the accused to be further remanded under Section 259 of the Criminal Procedure Code, pending disposal of his case.