KUCHING – Police have arrested a secondary school teacher here for allegedly molesting two male students.
Sarawak police commissioner Datuk Mancha Ata said the suspect was immediately arrested after the students’ parents lodged police reports on November 12.
“The parents have alleged their children were molested by the teacher, who was also the male hostel’s warden at the school,” he told a press conference at the state police headquarters here today.
Mancha said the case is being investigated under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences against Children Act 2017, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and caning.
As the 15-year-old victims were under the care and supervision of the suspect as a teacher and hostel warden, Mancha said an additional punishment could be meted out under Section 16 of the same act, with an additional maximum five years’ jail and at least two strokes of the cane upon conviction.
“The public has been advised to be alert about cases involving sexual offences against children because such incidents will be detrimental to the long-term emotional and mental health of the children,” he said.
Mancha also warned that individuals who fail to provide information related to sexual offences against children would be subject to a RM5,000 fine under Section 19 of the same act.
It is understood both incidents took place last year.
In the first incident, one of the victims was resting at the school when he was allegedly molested.
In the second incident, the suspect is said to have brought the other student back to his quarters located within the school compound because the teenager had a fever.
There, the teacher allegedly touched the victim sexually while supposedly helping to bathe the boy. – November 14, 2023