A 24-year-old woman in Kuching was fined RM4,000 for concealing the birth of her premature baby by secretly burying the infant’s body.
KUCHING: A 24-year-old woman was fined RM4,000 by the Magistrate’s Court here today after pleading guilty to concealing the birth of her premature baby by secretly disposing of the body.
Kui Chai Hui entered her guilty plea before Magistrate Ling Hui Chuan as soon as the charge under Section 318 of the Penal Code was read out to her.
The offence carries a maximum penalty of two years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both upon conviction.
She was charged with concealing the birth by burying the baby in a small forested area opposite her house in Taman Malihah on Jan 28 this year.
According to the facts of the case, Kui, who was seven months pregnant at the time, sought treatment at Sarawak General Hospital after experiencing abdominal pain and bleeding.
She later informed the attending doctor that she had delivered a baby, with further investigations revealing she had given birth in her bathroom.
Overcome by panic following the unexpected delivery, Kui proceeded to bury the infant and told medical personnel the baby had died.
A police report was subsequently lodged, prompting an investigation that led to the discovery of the infant’s body buried in a small forested area in front of her residential neighbourhood.
Kui settled the RM4,000 fine in default of six months’ imprisonment.
She was represented by lawyer Milton Foo, while the prosecution was conducted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Ahmad Fauzulutfi Suriani.
