Photo for illustration purposes only.
KUCHING (Oct 13): The Sessions Court here today discharged and acquitted a 48-year-old man of three counts of sexually assaulting his then eight-year-old stepdaughter last year.
Judge Musli Ab Hamid delivered the decision after finding the prosecution had failed to prove a prima facie case against the accused.
The court therefore discharged and acquitted the accused at the close of the prosecution’s case without calling him to enter his defence.
The three charges were framed under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, which is punishable under Section 14 of the same Act, read together with Section 16 of the same Act, which carries a jail term of up to 20 years and caning.
According to the three charges, the man was accused of committing the offence in Matang between January 2022 and Oct 6, 2022.
During the trial, four prosecution witnesses were called.
DPP Norshafatihah Nor Azmi prosecuted the case.