Duo on trafficking charge to know fate on Jan 23

KOTA KINABALU: A man and a woman, who were charged with four counts of trafficking in four girls for the purpose of exploitation, will know their fate on Jan 23 at the Sessions Court here.

Judge Azreena Aziz set the date for Hasrul Abd Hamid and Siti Nurain Abdul Malik @ Rachel after the defence closed its case yesterday.

On the first to fourth counts, Hasrul and Siti Nurain are accused of trafficking in the victims, aged between 15 and 17, at an entertainment outlet along Jalan Lintas at 1.45am on Feb 7.

The two were jointly charged under Section 14 of the AntiTrafficking in Persons and AntiSmuggling of Migrants Act 2007, read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code, which carries a jail term of up to 20 years and also liable to a fine, upon conviction.

The prosecution had produced seven witnesses to testify against both the accused persons, while the defence had called four witnesses.

Meanwhile, the same court will rule on Jan 30 whether a man will be freed or to enter his defence on a charge of committing sexual abuse against his three-year- old grand- daughter.

The accused, aged 48, allegedly committed the offence on the toddler at a house here at 6.30pm on Sept 19, 2017. The charge was under Section 15 (a) (i) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, which provides for a jail term of up to 10 years and whipping, upon conviction.

The prosecution had called five witnesses to give their oral evidence against the accused.