SANDAKAN: A primary school disciplinary teacher in Beluran was sentenced to a total of 80 years imprisonment and a total of 20 strokes of the cane on 14 charges of rape, molestation and sodomy of eight female pupils.
Sessions Court judge Ummu Kalthom Abd Samad meted out the sentences on Freddie @ Ampat Unsin, 56, here today.
Freddie was sentenced to 15 and 18 years imprisonment respectively on two charges of raping a nine-year-old pupil in November 2015 and a 10-year-old in March-July 2016 at the school where he worked in Beluran. He was also ordered to be given three and four strokes of the cane respectively.
The judge ordered that the sentences run concurrently from the date he was first charged on Dec 27, 2017. He will thus serve only 18 years.
On 11 charges of molestation, the judge laid down concurrent sentences of 10 years’ imprisonment on six charges. The 10 years will be served after his time for the two rape charges.
He was also sentenced to three strokes of the cane on each charge.
The 11 molestation charges involved pupils aged six to 10 years old, and occurred between January and July 2016.
He was also found guilty of sodomising a 10-year-old pupil at the same school between June and July 2016 and was sentenced to four years imprisonment and one stroke of the cane to run consecutively from the other offences.
In delivering her ruling, Ummu Kalthom said the offences committed by the accused were serious as he was serving as a disciplinary teacher, but took advantage of the child victims who were supposed to feel safe under his supervision at the school.
“Circumstances of the offences in this case showed resistance from the victims, but due to the accused’s position as a teacher puts all the victims in helpless situations,” she said.
During mitigation, counsel Hamida Ambo asked for a lenient punishment for her client as he was a first offender and was married with four children.
Deputy public prosecutor Mark Netto appeared for the prosecution.