4 Boys Accused Of Gang-Raping A 12-Year-Old Girl Allowed Bail By Seremban Court
The boys, aged 14 to 23, gang-raped the victim in multiple hotels in Bahau, Negeri Sembilan.
By Sadho Ram — 23 Feb 2023, 04:37 PM
A group of four boys gang-raped a 12-year-old girl in two hotels, about five minutes apart from each other, in Negeri Sembilan last month
Of the four, two are juveniles, aged 14 and 17. They cannot be named. The other two are 19-year-old Wong Chee Keong and 23-year-old Neo Jing Cong, reported New Straits Times today, 23 February.
The four boys were charged at the Seremban Sessions Court today with two counts of gang-raping the minor victim on 24 January, who is only two months away from turning 13.
According to the charge sheet, Wong, Neo, and the two juveniles gang-raped the victim first in a room at the Riverview Hotel in Bahau, Jempol
They then took the victim to TH Hotel, operated by OYO, located in the vicinity of the first hotel and committed the same offence just half an hour later the same day.
All four pleaded not guilty after the charges were read out before judge Datin Surita Budin. They have been charged under Section 375B of the Penal Code for gang rape.
If convicted, they can be jailed between 10 to 30 years.
At the trial, Datuk P M Nagarajan represented Wong, Neo, and the 14-year-old, while Datuk Abu Bakar Isa Ramat represented the 17-year-old
Deputy public prosecutor (DPP) Goh Hsiao Tung, appearing for the prosecution, asked the court for a second mention date as the prosecution has yet to obtain the victim's medical reports, reported The Star.
The lawyers representing the four accused then asked the court to allow the lowest bail possible, adding that the amount should be low as all the accused earned very little.
According to Nagarajan, Neo earned around RM1,500 as a site supervisor, Wong earned about RM1,200 salary as an assistant at a warehouse, and the 14-year-old juvenile was a school dropout.
The 14-year-old's father was present in the court during the trial to bail him out.
Similarly, Abu Bakar also asked for a low bail as the 17-year-old accused worked as a scrap metal collector and earned about RM1,000 a month. He stopped schooling after Standard Six.
He said the accused would be bailed by his older sister earning about RM2,000 a month.
DPP Goh asked the court not to allow bail, citing the seriousness of the offence involving a minor.
"However, if the court intends to offer bail, I ask for the court to set a high bail and order the accused not to harass the victim," New Straits Times quoted Goh as requesting judge Surita.
Judge Surita allowed bail at RM7,000 for each of the accused
She told all four to report to the nearest police station once a month and also issued an order for the accused to stay away and not harass the victim.
Surita then fixed 30 March for the re-mention of the case to enable parties to submit documents.
If you or someone you know may be at risk or has experienced sexual abuse or assault, please reach out to these Malaysian organisations:
1. WOMEN'S AID ORGANISATION (WAO)
Operating hours: 24-hour
Contact: +603-30008858
SMS/WhatsApp: +6018-9888058
Website | Facebook | Twitter
2. ALL WOMEN'S ACTION SOCIETY (AWAM)
Operating hours: Monday to Friday (9.30am - 5.30pm)
Contact: +603-78770224
WhatsApp/Telegram: +6016-2284221 | +6016-2374221
Email: [email protected]
Website | Facebook | Twitter
3. WOMEN'S CENTRE FOR CHANGE PENANG (WCC PENANG)
Operating hours: Monday to Friday (9am - 5pm)
Contact: +604-2280342 | +604-3988340
WhatsApp: +6011-31084001 | +6016-4180342
Email: [email protected]
Website | Facebook | Twitter
4. SARAWAK WOMEN FOR WOMEN SOCIETY (SWWS)
Operating hours: Monday (7pm - 9pm),Tuesday to Thursday (9.30am - 11.30am), Saturday (2pm - 4pm)
Contact: +6082-368853
SMS/WhatsApp: +6016-5822660 | +6013-8044285
Email: [email protected]
Website | Facebook | Twitter
5. SABAH WOMEN'S ACTION-RESOURCE GROUP (SAWO)
Operating hours: Monday to Friday (9am - 5pm)
Contact: +6088-280200 | +6011-27908020
Email: [email protected]
Website | Facebook | Twitter
6. PROTECT AND SAVE THE CHILDREN (PS THE CHILDREN)
Operating hours: Monday to Friday (3pm - 12am)
WhatsApp: +6016-7213065
Email: [email protected]
Website | Facebook | Twitter
7. INTERNET WATCH FOUNDATION (IWF)
Anonymously and confidentially report child sexual abuse content and non-photographic child sexual abuse images with IWF's Reporting Portal.
