Military man charged with raping, sexually assaulting 13-year-old
The 32-year-old father of one pleaded not guilty to all charges when they were read out before Judge Haderiah Siri.
Deputy public prosecutor Wardah Ishhar and lawyer SS Amritpal Singh represented the prosecution and defence, respectively.
According to the first three charges, the sergeant is accused of raping a girl aged 12 years and six months and committing two counts of physical sexual assault against the same victim.
The rape charge was filed under Section 376(1) of the Penal Code, which provides for up to 20 years' jail and whipping upon conviction.
The sexual assault charges were framed under Sections 14(a) and 14(b) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act (SOACA) 2017, which carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in jail and whipping.
For the fourth charge, he is accused of sexually grooming the child by communicating with her over the phone, an offence under Section 12 of SOACA 2017, which carries a maximum sentence of five years' imprisonment and whipping.
"He was also charged under Section 13 of the same Act for meeting the victim after grooming her, by picking her up from her hostel and taking her out in a car.
If convicted, the charge provides for a jail term of up to 10 years and whipping.
All the offences were allegedly committed inside a Perodua Viva at the car park of a supermarket in Cheng, near here, around 1pm on May 4.
The prosecution proposed bail at RM90,000 for all charges combined, with additional conditions that the accused report to the police once a month and refrain from contacting the victim, her family, or prosecution witnesses.
The defence appealed for a lower bail amount, arguing that the accused had served in the military for 10 years, posed no flight risk, and was the sole breadwinner of his family.
The court allowed bail at RM25,000 for all charges combined, with the additional conditions as requested by the prosecution.
The case has been set for mention on June 26 for document submission.
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