KUCHING: A manual labourer was sentenced to six years in prison and four lashes of the whips by the Sessions Court here yesterday for robbing a woman and caused serious injuries in an incident in Jalan Sultan Tengah.
Accused, 28, pleaded guilty the charge which was read before Judge Taufik Mohd Yusoff.
According to the charge, he was accused of robbing a 35-year-old woman in front of the Sego building at Jalan Sultan Tengah, between about 4.30 am and 6.15 am last June 21.
During the incident, the accused allegedly robbed a handbag and a smartphone belonging to the victim.
Therefore, he was charged under Section 392 of the Penal Code and read together with Section 397 of the same code and upon conviction he could be sentenced up to 14 years in prison and could be fined or whipped.
According to the facts of the case, during the incident, the complainant (victim’s husband) was contacted by an unknown man stating his wife was involved in a road accident in front of the Sego building at Jalan Sultan Tengah.
Upon arriving at the scene, the complainant saw his wife lying on the ground at the edge of the ditch after being robbed by the accused.
As a result of the incident, the victim lost a handbag, a Samsung smartphone, and RM100 cash.
The victim who suffered severe injuries to the abdomen, waist and legs was then taken to hospital for further treatment.
The complainant then lodged a police report for further action and investigation which led to the arrest of the accused on June 26.
As a result of the investigation, the victim recognised the face and items used by the accused during the incident.
Apart from that, the accused also admitted that he was motivated to rob the victim’s handbag which was placed in the motorcycle basket when the victim was alone in a quiet place at the scene.
The accused took the victim’s money and phone and then threw the phone into the river.
Based on the doctor’s report, the victim suffered severe injuries to the pelvis and a broken left middle finger.
Kuching district police chief ACP Ahsmon Bajah confirmed that a snatching incident involving a female motorcyclist heading to work was approached by the suspect’s motorcycle, causing her to lose control and slip into a drain while the suspect also took the victim’s wallet and mobile phone before fleeing.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Danial Mohamad Ali while the accused was not represented by a lawyer.
