Muhammad Yaqoob, a Pakistani man aged 32, pleaded not guilty before magistrate Normaizan Rahim while his wife, Norizan Yahya, aged 52, also denied the charge before magistrate Farah Nasihah Annuar.

Yaqoob was charged under Section 324 of the Penal Code with voluntarily causing hurt with a weapon, an offence which carries a jail term of up to 10 years, a fine or whipping, or any two of the punishments, upon conviction.

Norizan was charged under Section 323 of the Penal Code with voluntarily causing hurt, an offence that carries a maximum jail term of up to one year or a fine of up to RM2,000, or both, if convicted.

Both the accused allegedly committed the offence at a house in Taman Tun Abdul Razak, Ampang, between March 9 and April 23 this year.

The court allowed bail of RM5,000 with two sureties for Yaqoob and ordered him to report to the nearest police station once a month. Norizan was allowed bail of RM2,000.

The case will be re-mentioned on June 18.

Last week, police raided the school and rescued eight male students, aged between seven and 15. The couple, who had allegedly been running the school illegally in Taman Tun Abdul Razak, Ampang, since October 2020, were arrested.

The eight students claimed they were abused by the couple.

One of the victims claimed he was punched in the head by the man who ran the school, besides being caned on his hands and feet, while the wife allegedly slapped him on the face four times. According to police, the boy had new and old bruises.