PUTRAJAYA, Jan 6 — A former driving school instructor began serving an eight-year jail sentence today after the Court of Appeal reinstated his conviction for physical sexual assault of a 17-year-old girl in 2021.
Lim Yoke Pin, 75, had previously been discharged and acquitted by the High Court of the offence.
Today, a three-member Court of Appeal bench comprising Justices Datuk Azman Abdullah, Datuk Hayatul Akmal Abdul Aziz, and Datuk Mohd Radzi Abdul Hamid allowed the prosecution’s appeal, setting aside the accused's acquittal and reinstating the Sessions Court’s decision that convicted him of the offence.
Judge Hayatul, who delivered the court's decision, said the victim was consistent in her testimony that Lim had groped her breasts and genitals.
She noted there was no evidence that the victim had a motive to frame the accused.
However, after taking Lim's age into account, the court set aside the 12-year prison sentence and three strokes of the cane imposed by the Sessions Court, and replaced them with eight years in prison.
She ordered the accused to serve an eight-year sentence starting today.
On June 9, 2023, the Raub Sessions Court found Lim guilty of physical sexual assault of the girl in Jalan Desa Damai, Bentong, at 3pm on March 14, 2021. The court sentenced him to 12 years in jail and three strokes of the rotan.
On July 29 last year, the High Court acquitted and discharged the accused of the offence, prompting the prosecution to appeal to the Court of Appeal.
At the appeal hearing in the Court of Appeal, Deputy Public Prosecutor Zaki Asyraf Zubir said the High Court erred in fact and law when it acquitted Lim.
He said the Sessions Court judge had, in fact, made a finding that the victim’s testimony was compelling.
However, the accused's lawyer Chong Pei Yen urged the court to uphold the High Court’s decision, arguing that the victim did not report the incident to the police immediately and only filed a report an hour later.
