KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 27 — A woman testified in the court today that celebrity preacher Ebit Lew requested her to expose her breasts, and that he may have taken a screenshot during their video call.
According to Malay daily Sinar Harian the woman who is the prosecution's ninth witness, made this claim while responding to cross-examination by defence lawyer Datuk Ram Singh during the ongoing trial.
During cross-examination, the woman was asked whether she believed that all the text messages and images she had sent, including the photo of her breasts, were inappropriate.
“I didn’t send the photo. It was during a video call when he asked me to expose myself, and perhaps he took a screenshot, which is why he has it in his possession.
“At the time, I was naive and deceived by what he asked me to do. He should have been offering advice to someone seeking help, but instead, he manipulated me,” she was quoted saying by the Malay daily during the ongoing trial in Tenom Court.
When asked to elaborate if she had been coerced into exposing herself, the woman reportedly said: "I was coerced because it happened repeatedly. Initially, I didn’t comply, but after several attempts, I gave in due to manipulation."
Ram then asked whether she agreed that the image was not captured during the video call.
“I’m uncertain because to the best of my memory, it was during the video call. If I had sent a photo, I genuinely can’t recall when,” she replied.
Ebit Lew, whose real name is Ebit Irawan Ibrahim, 38, is facing 11 charges of sending obscene images and messages with the intent of outraging the modesty of the victim via WhatsApp between March and June 2021, under Section 509 of the Penal Code.
The prosecution is being led by Deputy Public Prosecutors Nor Azizah Mohamad, Zahida Zakaria, and Analia Kamaruddin.
Ebit Lew is being represented by Ram, Kamarudin Mohmad Chinki, Timothy Daut, Mohd Syarulnizam Salleh Keruak, and Prem Elmer Ganasan, with Magistrate Nur Asyraf Zolhani presiding over the trial.
