IPOH, Oct 17 — The Sessions Court here today sentenced a fisherman to a total of 202 years in jail and 23 strokes of the rotan after he admitted to sexually assaulting his stepdaughter over a period of three years.

The court, however, ordered the sentences to run concurrently and also consecutively for all 22 charges against the 37-year-old, which include rape, molest, unnatural sex and filming his stepdaughter naked.

As a result, the man will only spend 38 years behind the bars. The sentence commenced from the day he was arrested.

The Penal Code charges were framed as incest under Section 376B which provides for a jail sentence of between 10 and 30 years, and whipping; unnatural sex under Section 377C which provides for jail between five and 20 years; criminal force to outrage a person’s modesty under Section 354 with a maximum penalty of jail up to 10 years, or fine, or whipping, or any two such punishments.

The man was also charged under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Act Against Children 2017 which carries a maximum of 25 years jail, and whipping.

For recording a nude video of her, he was charged under Section 509 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum jail term of five years, a fine, or both upon conviction.

The accused entered a guilty plea for all the charges read in front of the Sessions Court Judge Julie Lack.

He committed the offence at the victim’s house in Kampung Tersusun Baru, Lekir in Sitiawan between April 2016 and September 29 this year.

The sexual assault began when the girl was only 12. She is now 15.

According to the fact sheet, the matter was only exposed after the victim’s mother found out about her daughter’s nude video in her former husband’s SD memory card.

The mother filed a police report and the accused was arrested on September 30.

The victim was brought to the Manjung Hospital in order to be examined by a doctor who determined that she had likely been sexually assaulted.

The victim’s impact statement which was read in the court today said that her stepdad had molested her, forcefully inserted his penis in her mouth and raped her on several occasions for the past three years, when her mother was either away from home or asleep.

The statement also further reads that the victim was threatened by her stepdad to stay silent.

Lawyer Robert Gannarajan, who represented the accused, requested for a minimum sentence.

"The accused is regretting and asks for apologies for the things that he has done,” he said.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Naidatul Athirah Azman urged the court for a maximum sentence as she said the victim not only suffered trauma, but also felt embarrassed as the incident has become known among her friends and family.

"Rape not only causes physical injuries, but also affects a person mentally and psychologically,” she said.

Sessions Judge Lack then sentenced the accused to 38 years’ imprisonment and 23 strokes after taking into consideration the submissions made by both sides and also the willingness of the accused to admit his guilt, which she said had saved the court both time and money.