KOTA TINGGI, Sept 12 — A 40-year-old assistant manager was jailed for five years after he pleaded guilty at the Sessions Court here today to a charge of sexually abusing a teenage boy on September 6.
The accused, Zulhilmi Zailani, 40, made the plea after the charge was read out before Judge Haydar Faridzal Abu Hasan.
According to the charge sheet, the accused committed physical assault for sexual purposes on the 16-year-old male victim by touching his genitals and performing oral sex.
The offence was committed by the side of the road in front of the Bukit Besar petrol station here at 2am on September 6.
The charge was framed under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, which provides for a jail term of up to 20 years and whipping upon conviction.
The accused may also be ordered to undergo counselling, pay compensation to the victim, and be placed under police supervision.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Nor Afiqah Musa, while the accused was unrepresented.
According to the facts of the case, the accused sent a text message via the Whatsapp application inviting the victim, who was also his neighbour, to eat out in Kulai at 11.30pm on September 5.
Following the outing, the accused took off the victim’s pants and proceeded to hold his genitals before performing oral sex on the teenager at a petrol station in Bukit Besar near here at 2.30am on September 6.
The victim then fled to the petrol station’s toilet where he made a phone call to a friend to fetch him home.
The victim’s friend then took the victim home where he later filed a report of the incident at the Kota Tinggi district police headquarters on September 8.
Nor Afiqah requested the court to impose a suitable sentence so that the accused would not repeat the same act.
Meanwhile, Zulhilmi pleaded for a lighter sentence and asked to be spared caning, citing asthma and his responsibilities towards his parents and siblings.
The accused also volunteered to take up charity work if released.
The court then imposed a five-year prison sentence on Zulhilmi from the date of his arrest without caning.
The accused must also undergo counselling or rehabilitation and be subject to police supervision for two years upon his release from detention.
