Married Soldier Charged With Raping A Female Colleague In Kota Kinabalu
The suspect has been granted bail of RM10,000, with RM7,000 to be deposited to the court.
By Daranee Balachandar — 10 Jun 2021, 06:29 PM
A married soldier was charged at the Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court in Sabah earlier this week with raping a female colleague
Lance Corporal Muhammad Eric Elister Elvis was accused of raping the 22-year-old woman at a storeroom in the Lok Kawi Camp in Putatan, Sabah, reported New Straits Times.
The incident allegedly took place at 6am on 22 May.
No plea has been recorded from the 30-year-old soldier, with a pending medical report due.
A re-mention of the case has been fixed for 15 July by Judge Abu Bakar Manat.
Deputy public prosecutor Nur Syafiqah Suleiman had previously requested that no bail be allowed
The reason behind the request is that both the accused and victim are in the army.
Nur Syafiqah did, however, state that bail should be set at RM20,000 should the court decide to grant bail.
Following as such, she added that the accused should be required to report to the Penampang police station once every fortnight, pending disposal of the case.
The accused was represented by counsel Farazwin Haxdy, who applied for bail to be allowed.
Farazwin said that this is because the pending medical report would require time to be completed.
She also emphasised the current COVID-19 pandemic as a reason for bail.
The suspect's counsel submitted that he had no disciplinary report, no flight risk, and no opportunity of tampering with witnesses and the victim.
This is due to him being under supervision and having to report daily to his superior.
The court set bail for RM10,000, with only RM7,000 to be given to the court
Two local sureties, including the alleged suspect's wife, were nominated to oversee that the bail be deposited to the court.
Another condition set by the court is that the accused is required to report himself to the investigating officer once a month.
His international passport will be kept by the court pending disposal of the case.
The alleged suspect has also been banned from approaching the victim and the prosecution witnesses while the case is ongoing.
The accused was charged under Section 376(1) of the Penal Code. If convicted, he will be facing a jail term of up to 20 years and whipping.
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