KUALA LUMPUR: An Indonesian labourer was charged in the Selayang sessions court here today with committing physical sexual assault on a child in a convenience store last month.
Aris, 46, pleaded not guilty after the charge was read out to him before judge Syafeera Mohd Said.
The long-haired accused, who wore a black T-shirt with red shorts, appeared relaxed and unaffected as he was brought into the courtroom.
According to the charge sheet the accused had on July 10 at 6.19pm, committed physical sexual assault by fondling a nine-year-old girl at a convenience store in Bandar Country Homes, Rawang, Selangor.
The charge framed under Section 14 (a) of the Child Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, provides for a maximum jail term of 20 years and whipping, upon conviction.
Earlier deputy public prosecutor M. Arunjothy did not offer bail as the accused is a foreigner and has no identification documents.
The accused was denied bail and the court fixed Sept 4 for mention.
It is learned that the accused is married with a child, and has been residing in Malaysia with his family for the past 15 years.
Recently, a 51-second video clip of the incident, showing a man molesting an underage girl while she was in a convenience store with her younger sibling, went viral on social media. - Bernama
