SANDAKAN: A 50-year-old foreigner was sentenced to a combined jail term of 28 years and 25 strokes of the rotan by the Sessions Court here on July 28, after pleading guilty to three counts of rape and sexual assault against his 15-year-old biological daughter.
While the aggregate jail term for two charges totalled 28 years, the effective custodial sentence is 21 years after the court ordered two of the imprisonment terms to run concurrently. The jail term takes effect from the date of the accused’s arrest.
Sessions Court Judge Roslinda Razali, who presided over the case, handed down the sentence to the unrepresented accused. On the first charge, which was framed under Section 376(3) of the Penal Code for rape, the court imposed 20 years’ imprisonment and 18 strokes of the cane.
For the second charge under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, the accused received seven years and five strokes. The judge ordered these two prison sentences to run concurrently, making the effective imprisonment for these counts 20 years.
In addition, the court sentenced the accused to a further one year in prison and two strokes under Section 16(1) of the same Act for a related sexual offence. The judge ordered this term to run consecutively to the other sentences, bringing the total effective jail time to 21 years alongside 25 strokes of the cane.
According to case facts presented in court, the offences occurred at about 3.00 am on March 1, 2026, at their home in Mile 21, Sandakan. The victim lodged a police report the following day, on March 2, which subsequently led to the suspect’s detention and prosecution.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Yuvan Bharathan conducted the prosecution in the case. – James Leong
The accused (centre), is escorted from the courthouse after sentencing.
