PUTRAJAYA: High drama unfolded in a court here today when a 59-year-old cabbie fainted upon hearing that he would be spending the next seven years in jail and receiving a stroke of the rotan for molesting his stepdaughter while she was sleeping.
Stunned by the verdict, the man who cannot be named to protect the victim's identity, fell to the floor when he was sentenced by the Special Court for Child Sexual Crimes after he pleaded guilty to the offence.
In pleading for leniency, the accused said he regretted what he had done and promised not to repeat the offence.
"I want to take care of my wife and children. I am the sole breadwinner of my family and am also suffering from high blood pressure and asthma since I was involved in an accident," he said, while wiping his tears.
He then had to be carried out of the courtroom by police.
The accused was charged with molesting his 16-year-old stepdaughter, an offence under Section 377CA of the Penal Code which carries a maximum imprisonment of 30 years and liable to whipping.
He committed the offence at their house in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur about 3am around June last year.
Judge Yong Zarida Sazali ordered for his sentence to run from the date of his arrest on Aug 21.
Deputy public prosecutor Aimi Syazwani Sarmin urged for a deterrent sentence saying that the incident occurred at their house which was supposed to be the shelter and a safe place for the child.
The accused was unrepresented.
