> Man jailed for raping 14yo sister-in-law

KUANTAN: A businessman was yesterday sentenced to nine years’ jail and five strokes of the rotan by the Sessions Court for raping a 14-year-old girl, who was also his would-be sister-in-law, in 2005.

The 47-year-old man was found guilty of raping the girl, who is now 17, at the backroom of a restaurant in Sungai Isap 2 here between November, 2005, and January, 2006.

At the time, the accused, who was already married with four children, was engaged to the victim’s older sister.

He was arrested on March 3, 2006, and the case went to trial in November.

He went on to marry his fiance although they are now separated.

The accused’s lawyer, Syed Azimal Syed Abu Bakar, in mitigation, asked for a lighter sentence as his client had no previous criminal record and has several school-going children to support.

Deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Fadzli Mahmud said the accused had victimised the girl who eventually became his sister-in-law.

Sessions Court judge Habibah Mohamed Yusof ordered the sentence to start from yesterday.

Syed Azimal told the court that he would file a request for a stay of execution on the sentence pending an appeal.