Two men receive 11 years in prison and two blows with a rotan for raping an 18-year-old girl

KUALA LUMPUR: The local district court on Friday (Sept 20) sentenced two men to 11 years in prison and two lashes after finding them guilty of raping an 18-year-old girl in a car in May last year.

Judge Izralizam Sanusi convicted truck driver B. Satia, 27, and his friend T. Khanesen, 31, a construction site manager, after the defense failed to raise reasonable doubts at the end of their pleadings.

“Having considered mitigating circumstances and weighed the facts as fairly as possible, the court found that the two defendants’ request for good behaviour bail was not appropriate.

“The court therefore sentences the two defendants to 11 years’ imprisonment with two strokes of the cane,” said Judge Izralizam, who ordered that the prison sentence begin on Friday.

Earlier, lawyers Muhammad Amin Abdullah and K. Ponnusamy, representing Satia and Khanesen respectively, had sought punishment in the form of bail for good behaviour as the two accused are the main breadwinners of their families and are first-time offenders.

“We also seek a stay of execution while we await the filing of an appeal in the Supreme Court,” Ponnusamy said.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Nor Aisyah Mohamed Zanyuin objected to the application for bail on the grounds of good behaviour, as the offence committed was rape, which is a serious offence.

“The prosecution is demanding a harsh punishment as a lesson for the two defendants so that they are held accountable for the crime committed. The prosecution is demanding an immediate prison sentence to underline public disapproval, punish the perpetrators and, above all, protect women,” said Nor Aisyah.

The court allowed a stay of execution of the sentence, but increased the bail from RM 9,000 to RM 11,000 to ensure the presence of the two defendants at future proceedings.

During the trial, which began in February, a total of 14 witnesses for the prosecution and seven witnesses for the defense were called, including the two defendants.

On May 24 last year, Satia was charged with raping an 18-year-old girl in a car near an entertainment centre, Jalan Tun Razak, Maluri here, at 5.20am on May 13, 2023.

Khanesen was also accused of committing the same crime against the same victim at the same location at 5:06 a.m.

For both offences, charges were brought under Section 376(1) of the Penal Code, which carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years and flogging. – Bernama