KUALA LUMPUR: A father was sentenced to eight months in prison by the Sessions Court here today after pleading guilty to four charges of beating his two biological children two weeks ago.
Judge Datin Fadzlin Suraya Mohd Suah handed down the sentence to the 35-year-old unemployed man and ordered the eight-month prison term for each charge to run concurrently from the date of his arrest on June 1.
According to the four charges, the accused, who had custody of his 15-year-old daughter and 13-year-old son, was accused of intentionally abusing the teenagers, potentially causing physical and emotional harm.
All the offences were committed at a house in Kepong Utara, Sentul, here between 9 pm on May 30 and 5 am on June 1 under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, which carries a maximum fine of RM50,000 or a jail term of up to 20 years or both, upon conviction.
According to the case facts, on May 30 between 9 pm and midnight, the accused beat his son’s legs using a badminton racquet and also slapped the latter’s face and hit his body.
His daughter was also struck in the face with the badminton racquet on May 31, and the father forced both teenagers to duck walk continuously inside the house for an extended period on June 1.
Earlier, Deputy Public Prosecutor Nidzuwan Abd Latip requested a commensurate punishment as a deterrent, while the unrepresented accused pleaded for a lighter sentence, citing that he had five dependents and suffered from heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
