Bukit Aman’s sexual, women and child investigation division head Saroja Egamparam said it was now left to the AGC to decide on the next course of action.
“Our job is to investigate and we leave it to the attorney-general (Tommy Thomas) to decide on what to do next,” she said.
She said the girl had also been sent for a medical examination
Saroja was one of the speakers in a talk on “Child Sexual Abuse: The Impact on Corporations.”
She said this in response to a question from the floor on why no action had been taken against the man for marrying a child.
Approached by reporters later, she declined to reveal when the investigation papers were submitted.
She said the number of convictions for sexual offences related to children was low as most cases involved family members such as the father, stepfather or brother.
“Conviction rate is low due to a lack of evidence when tested in court,” she said, adding that sometimes police reports or prosecution against suspects were withdrawn.
Former de facto law minister Azalina Othman Said, also a speaker, said the Sexual Offences Against Children Act had provisions to prosecute the businessman and his family members.
“For example, Section 12 makes it an offence to groom a child,” she said, adding that more needed to be done to raise awareness to protect children from sexual exploitation.
It has been reported that Che Mohd Karim Che Hamid was fined RM1,800 by the Gua Musang shariah lower court for an unauthorised marriage and unapproved polygamy involving the 11-year-old girl.
The father of six paid the fine after pleading guilty.
Che Karim, a purported imam with two wives, sparked outrage after a photograph of the marriage ceremony went viral.
But Che Karim defended his actions and said that he had received the blessings of the girl’s parents. He had also threatened to take legal action against those who condemned him.
He said he would go ahead to formalise the marriage by applying for a marriage certificate after five years, when his “wife” turned 16, the marital age allowed by Malaysian shariah law.
Che Karim’s young bride said she loved the man and was happy to marry him and that she was willing to wait five years for their marriage to be formalised.
It was recently reported that the girl had returned to Thailand, her country of birth.
Narathiwat provincial governor Suraporn Prommool said the girl was undergoing mental health counselling because of the intense level of attention sparked by her marriage.
Why was child bride sent back to Thailand, asks lawyers group