KUALA LUMPUR: A 40-year-old man, initially sentenced to nearly a century in prison for incest and sexually assaulting his underage stepdaughter, had his sentence reduced to 39 years.
The Ipoh High Court made the ruling after partially allowing the accused's appeal against his jail sentences to run concurrently.
The accused was convicted in the Sessions Court on 19 counts of incest under Section 376B of the Penal Code and four counts of sexual assault under Section 14 of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, involving a 14-year-old victim.
The Sessions Court sentenced the accused to seven years in prison and one stroke of the cane for each sexual assault charge and 12 years in prison and one stroke of the cane for each incest charge.
High Court judge Datuk Bhupindar Singh Gucharan Singh Preet dismissed the accused's appeal against his sexual assault sentence but allowed the jail terms for the incest charges to run concurrently.
The total number of lashes for all the cases was limited to 24 strokes based on Section 288(5) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
The court said the appellant would be 139 years old upon completing his jail sentence.
"Although the court considered the usual one-third remission granted by the prison authorities, the appellant would be 106 years old upon release from prison.
"Thus, I believe that the consecutive sentences imposed by the Sessions Court are disproportionate to the circumstances of the case and are excessively harsh.
"After considering the appellant's appeal, this court has reduced the prison sentence by 60 years from the sentence imposed by the Sessions Court.
"In my opinion, the total prison sentence of 39 years is a fair, reasonable and proportionate punishment for the crimes committed by the appellant," he said in his ground of judgment.
The judge said with remission for good behaviour, the appellant would be released from prison at the age of 66. He said the appellant would have ample time to undergo rehabilitation and study recovery and religious modules while in prison.
"If the appellant completes this sentence, he will only be able to enjoy and continue life in his old age, making it highly unlikely for him to reoffend.
"It is hoped that when the appellant is released from prison, he will have transformed into a better person and be able to reintegrate into society for the remainder of his life," he added.