PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal on Wednesday (Dec 15) upheld the 20 years jail sentence and 12 strokes of the cane imposed on a man who raped and conducted unnatural sex on a woman, and advised him to seek forgiveness from Allah for his actions.

       A three-member panel led by Datuk Seri Kamaludin Md Said dismissed the appeal by Mohamad Nurhadi Othman, 31 against the sentence meted out by the Kuala Terengganu High Court on May 14, 2019.

       Judge Datuk Ghazali Cha, who also sat on the bench, advised the man to be remorseful and to not repeat the mistakes after completing the prison sentence.

       "You are a Muslim, ask for forgiveness from Allah during and your stay in prison, perform the five times a day prayer. Hope when you get out of prison, you will truly be remorseful," said Judge Ghazali.

       Earlier, Kamaludin, when dismissing the appeal, told Mohamad Nurhadi that he was lucky, as the jail sentences meted out on him by the High Court were to be served concurrently.

       "The jail sentence is reasonable and there is no reason for this court to interfere with the previous court's finding in sentencing the appellant to 20 years imprisonment and 12 strokes of the cane. Therefore, the appellant's appeal is dismissed and the sentence is upheld," said Judge Kamaludin.

       The other judge presiding on the bench is Justice Datuk Abu Bakar Jais.

       The High Court had sentenced Mohamad Nurhadi to 15 years in prison and six strokes of the cane each on three counts of having unnatural sex with the 21-year-old woman at a clothing store in Jalan Bukit Kecil, Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, between 10.10pm to 10.55pm on Aug 1, 2018.

       The charges were made under Section 377C of the Penal Code for committing carnal intercourse against the order of nature without consent, which provides an imprisonment for up to 20 years and also liable to whipping, upon conviction.

       The man was also sentenced to 20 years in prison and six strokes of the cane on a charge of raping the raping the woman at the same place, date and time.

       However, the court ordered the jail sentences to be served concurrently, meaning Mohamad Nurhadi would only serve 20 years in prison and to be given 12 strokes of the cane.

       He is also serving a 10-year jail sentence and ordered to be given 12 strokes of the cane for robbing the same victim. However, he did not appeal against the sentence.

       Earlier, Deputy Public Prosecutor Atiqah Abdul Karim@Husaini, in her submission, said that the action by the appellant was premeditated because the day before the incident, he was at a convenience store next to the victim's workplace.

       She said based on the facts of the case, the victim was at her workplace when the appellant approached her and asked her to try on a dress he wanted to buy for his girlfriend.

       "While the victim was trying on the dress, the appellant pointed a knife at her neck before raping, sodomising and forcing the woman to perform oral sex on him. He also robbed the victim' of her two gold bracelets," she added.

       Lawyer Mohamad Nor Hisam Hussain, representing Mohamad Nurhadi, said his client had pleaded guilty to the charge and that he had no previous criminal record. - Bernama