A three-member Court of Appeal bench chaired by Kamaludin Said said there could be no leniency due to the gravity of the offences.

The 30-year-old man had filed an appeal against the sentence after the sessions court effectively imposed a 20-year jail term and ordered that he be whipped 14 times.

The accused had pleaded guilty to raping the girl, who was then 13 years old, and also to two counts of sexually abusing her.

The charge sheets said the three offences were committed at a rubber smallholding in Sungai Siput at about 4pm on Aug 14, 2021.

The man was arrested on Oct 20, 2021 and charged a week later.

The trial judge sentenced him to 10 years’ jail and ordered him to be whipped six times for committing rape.

He was also given a five-year jail term and four strokes for each of the sexual abuse charges.

The trial court ordered the sentences to run consecutively, meaning the man would serve 20 years in jail and be whipped 14 times.

The Court of Appeal today enhanced the man’s sentence to 15 years for rape but maintained the five-year term for each of the remaining two offences.

Kamaludin, who sat with Supang Lian and Ahmad Nasfy Yasin, also ordered the man to be given three strokes of the rotan for each of the offences.

However, the Court of Appeal ordered the custodial sentence to run concurrently, meaning the man will serve 15 years from the date of his arrest.

Earlier, lawyer Kathan Maruthamuthu from the National Legal Aid Foundation, said the sentence should be reduced as his client pleaded guilty and saved the court and prosecution’s time.

However, deputy public prosecutor Aznee Salmie Ahmad submitted that the sentence should be maintained on grounds of public interest.

As the victim is a minor, the identities of the perpetrator and the victim have been withheld.