Judge M Kunasundary said the 36-year-old woman failed to raise a reasonable doubt in the prosecution’s case.

“After a maximum evaluation of the evidence by the prosecution and defence witnesses, this court finds the prosecution succeeded in proving its case beyond a reasonable doubt,” she said.

Kunasundary also ordered the accused to undergo counselling while serving her prison term and to be placed under police supervision for a year after her release.

The judge refused an application by lawyer M Soosai Raj from the National Legal Aid Foundation to suspend the sentence pending an appeal.

The woman committed the offence against the girl at a house in Damansara Bestari, Petaling, on May 26, 2023.

She was charged under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 for physical sexual assault, which carries a maximum jail term of up to 20 years.

Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Norhana Sahat urged the court to impose a sentence commensurate with the offence, taking into account public interest.

“The victim was a friend of the accused’s daughter,” she said.

Soosai applied for a lighter sentence on grounds that his client was a single mother who had to take care of two children who were still studying and also her mother.