KUALA LUMPUR, May 12 — Independent preacher Muhammad Fathi Na'im Mazlam was acquitted and discharged by the Sessions Court today on a charge of raping a 14-year-old girl five years ago.
Judge Tasnim Abu Bakar ruled that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against the 34-year-old, better known as Fathi Naim, at the close of the prosecution’s case.
She said the victim's testimony, the third prosecution witness, could not be regarded as credible after impeachment proceedings revealed material discrepancies between her testimony in this trial and her testimony in a separate case at the Klang Sessions Court.
“This court finds that the explanatory evidence revealed during the impeachment proceedings rendered the witness’s testimony unreliable and incapable of being categorised as credible evidence.
“As such, the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against the accused on the amended charge. Therefore, the accused is discharged and acquitted,” Judge Tasnim said.
A total of 11 prosecution witnesses testified during the proceedings, including the victim, her mother, and medical experts.
According to the amended charge, Fathi was alleged to have raped the then 14-year-old girl in a hotel room along Jalan Imbi, Bukit Bintang, between 2 m and 10am on December 3, 2021.
The charge was framed under Section 375(g) of the Penal Code and punishable under Section 376(1) of the same code, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment and caning upon conviction.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Siti Pervinah Mohamad Yusof said the prosecution would appeal against the decision.
Fathi, represented by lawyer Muhammad Ashraff Mohd Diah, is also facing six separate charges at the Klang Sessions Court involving the same victim.
Proceedings on the six charges have yet to begin.
On September 18 last year, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison and three strokes of the cane by Sessions Court Judge Noridah Adam (then Klang Sessions Court Judge) after being found guilty of raping and physically assaulting the same victim in July 2021.
Judge Noridah did not allow a stay of the prison sentence, but the accused was later released after the High Court granted a stay of the sentence pending appeal.
