Aszerul is escorted from the courtroom following sentencing.
KUCHING (July 6): The Sessions Court here today sentenced a labourer to six years’ jail and four strokes of the rotan for robbing a woman in front of a building in Petra Jaya last month.
Judge Mohd Taufik Mohd @ Mohd Yusoff convicted Aszerul Arsad, 28, on his own guilty plea to a charge framed under Section 392 of the Penal Code.
The Section, read together with Section 397 of the same Code, provides for a jail term of up to 14 years, a fine, or caning upon conviction.
Mohd Taufik ordered for Aszerul’s sentence to take effect from the date of his arrest on June 26.
According to the facts of the case, Aszerul robbed a 35-year-old woman of her handbag containing a smartphone and RM100 on June 21, 2022, between 4.30am and 6.15am, in front of the building at Jalan Sultan Tengah.
The woman’s husband, the complainant, was informed that she been injured in an accident in front of the premises.
Upon arriving at the scene, he saw his wife lying on the ground beside a drain, which she had ridden her motorcycle into, after Aszerul had snatched her handbag from behind.
This resulted in serious injuries to her stomach, waist, and legs.
She was subsequently brought to Sarawak General Hospital for treatment while the complainant lodged a police report.
Aszerul was then arrested on June 26.
The investigation revealed Aszerul saw the victim put her handbag into her motorcycle basket and decided to rob her as she was alone at that early hour.
The victim managed to see Aszerul clearly before riding into the drain and was able to identify his attire and helmet.
Aszerul also admitted he threw the stolen smartphone into a river after his photos and name went viral on Facebook, leading the public to hunt for him.
A report from the hospital revealed the victim suffered a pelvic ring fracture and left middle finger fracture.
Deputy public prosecutor Danial Muhamad Ali prosecuted the case while Aszerul was unrepresented by counsel.