SEREMBAN: A warden from an Al-Quran study center was sentenced to six years in prison and two strokes of the rotan by the Sessions Court here today after pleading guilty to charges of committing physical sexual assault, sodomy, and unnatural carnal sex against two boys, between 2023 and last January.
Judge Datin Surita Budin handed down the sentence against Mohd Khairi Fitri Baharom, 38, after the three charges were read separately and ordered him to serve the prison sentence starting from the date of his arrest on May 25.
Surita also ordered the accused to undergo rehabilitation counseling and police supervision for one year after completing his prison sentence.
According to the charges, Mohd Khairi Fitri was accused of committing physical sexual assault against a 12-year and four-month-old boy around 11 pm between Dec 15 and 20, 2023, in a warden’s room at the study center in Jempol.
He was also accused of sodomising the same victim around 10:30 pm on January 7, 2025, and committing unnatural carnal sex against a 10-year and seven-month-old boy at 5 pm between April and December 2024 at the same location.
The offences were charged under Section 14 (a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 and read together with Section 16(1) of the same act, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and caning if convicted.
He was also charged under Section 377C of the Penal Code, which carries a prison sentence of not less than five years and a maximum of 20 years and caning if convicted.
The accused, who was not represented by a lawyer during the appeal process, requested the court impose the lightest possible sentence on the grounds that he still had his mother to care for.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Norazihah Asmuni then requested a proportionate sentence be imposed given that the offences involved children and the accused was an individual responsible for their care and safety.
“The accused abused his power and committed sexual harassment against them, therefore, a proportionate sentence is requested as a lesson for offences against vulnerable children who can be exploited by anyone,“ she said.
In addition, Mohd Khairi Fitri pleaded not guilty to 12 other similar charges against the same victim and five other children aged between eight and 12 years and nine months, around 2024 to January 24, 2025, at the same location and a house in Jalan Air Melana in Kuala Pilah.
The charges were made under Section 14(a) and Section 14(b) of Act 792 and Section 377C of the Penal Code and the court then set July 14 for the next mention of the case and appointment of a lawyer.
