KOTA KINABALU: A man was sentenced to 16 years imprisonment plus 10 strokes of the cane for raping his 12-year-old daughter.
The 36-year-old labourer pleaded guilty before Sessions Court judge Amir Shah Amir Hassan.
He admitted raping the daughter in early January this year at about 1am at a house in a village in Papar district.
He was convicted under Section 376(3) of the Penal Code, which provides imprisonment of up to 30 years and a minimum of 10 strokes of whipping.
According to the facts of the case, the victim had been raped by the accused since she was eight years old in 2020, and the last incident was early this year.
The incident came to light after the victim told her friend and her classroom teacher.
The investigation revealed that the victim was threatened by the father not to tell anyone about the rape.
The victim had been living with the accused since his divorce.
The victim's grandfather lodged a police report on July 16, which led to the accused's arrest.
In mitigation, the accused, who was unrepresented, only asked for a lenient sentence.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Nurul Shafeerah Mad Iskim however, urged for a deterrent sentence due to his heinous and unacceptable act towards his daughter.
"The accused is the victim's biological father, whose duty is to protect the daughter, especially when the mother was separated from them when she was five.
"However, the accused had betrayed this trust by raping the poor daughter," she said, highlighting that the victim was raped more than 10 times, at times and places the victim herself could not recall.