KUALA LUMPUR – A 32-year-old technician was acquitted and discharged by the Kuala Lumpur Magistrate’s Court today after the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against him for allegedly molesting a woman at a Korean restaurant in Mont Kiara last year.
Magistrate Faezahnoor Hassan ruled that the evidence adduced by the prosecution was insufficient to prove the essential elements of the offence against the accused, Lim Wei Lun, at the close of the prosecution’s case.
Wei Lun had been charged under Section 354 of the Penal Code for allegedly using criminal force with intent to outrage modesty.
According to the charge, the incident allegedly occurred at about 6pm on May 5, 2024, at Kang Sikdang Korean BBQ Restaurant near Jalan Solaris 3, Mont Kiara, where the accused was said to have brushed against the complainant, a 37-year-old Chinese woman, causing his private part to come into contact with her buttocks.
Section 354 of the Penal Code carries a punishment of imprisonment for up to 10 years, or a fine, whipping, or any combination of two, upon conviction.
Speaking to MalaysiaGazette after the afternoon proceedings, counsel for the accused, Sivahnanthan Ragava, said the court found it unsafe to rely on the testimony of the complainant due to material inconsistencies, coupled with clear CCTV footage which contradicted the allegation.
“The court took the view that it was difficult to place reliance on the complainant’s evidence as her testimony was inconsistent, and the CCTV footage clearly showed that there was no contact at all between my client’s private part and the complainant’s buttocks,” he said.
Sivahnanthan said the court further found that the accused was merely walking past the complainant from behind, without any physical contact.
“The CCTV footage also showed that my client was walking forward and was not facing the complainant’s buttocks at any material time. It was very clear that he was merely passing behind her,” he said.
He added that the defence had submitted it was physically and logically impossible for the alleged act to have taken place in the manner described by the prosecution.
“We submitted to the court that there was no way our client could have molested the complainant using his private part in less than two seconds, while wearing jeans, and merely by passing through behind the complainant,” he said.
Sivahnanthan said the court accepted the defence’s submissions and ruled that the prosecution had failed to establish a case under Section 354 of the Penal Code.
“We are thankful that the court accepted our submissions and acquitted our client without calling for his defence,” he said. -MalayaDailyToday
