Former Principal Acquitted Of Sexually Assaulting 11-Year-Old Student In Penang 4 Years Ago

By Lara Lindemann  •  24 May 2022 in News

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After the prosecution failed to establish a case against him, a former principal of a school in Permatang Tok Jaya has been acquitted of sexually abusing an 11-year-old student at a school in Penang four years ago.

Zainuren Mohamed, 58, was originally charged with perpetrating against four students from his school – two boys aged 13 and two others aged 11 and 14 – between April 6 and October 10, 2018.

He entered a not guilty plea under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offenses Against Children Act of 2017.

The nature of the allegation was not clarified, as is customary in cases under this section. He was later granted bail for RM57,000.

Last year, the prosecution chose to drop three of the defendants from the charge: two 13-year-old boys and a 14-year-old boy. He also pleaded not guilty to these charges when he was brought to the Sessions Court in Butterworth on January 29, 2019.

If convicted, the accused would have been sentenced to a maximum of 20 years imprisonment and whipping.

Today, at the conclusion of the jury’s verdict, sessions court judge Nooraini Mohamed Yunus released Zainuren after discovering that the witness’ accounts were conflicting. The accused was represented by E Gnasegaran, Audrey Wee and Vikneshwaran Sehgar.

She also claimed that the prosecution’s case was flawed because it failed to appoint a key witness who was the first to make the sexual misconduct claim.

“Because of the loopholes in his case, the court concludes that if the accused chooses to remain silent even if his defence is called, it is not safe for the court to convict the accused based on the available prosecution evidence in court,” she explained.

Lawyer E Gnasegaran also stated that the court’s decision was equitable because there were material disparities in the claims concerning the time, place, and manner in which the purported incident occurred at the school premises. (The principal’s office and hostel, at 4pm and 11pm on October 10, 2018).

He mentioned in court that the defendant had also raised a vengeful justification behind the sexual harassment claims, and that the accusations came after Zainuren took disciplinary measures against a student and a teacher in connection with a bullying situation.

“The sexual assault allegations came three days after the principal imposed disciplinary action on the student and teacher,” he said.

The student was designated as the victim, and the teacher testified during the trial.

“At the time of their arrest, there were allegations that the boys were sodomised, but they later denied this during the court hearing. A medical examination also revealed no evidence of penetration or sexual violence,” he added.

Zainuren, who was with his wife at the time, told reporters that he was thankful for the court decision.

“I want to thank my lawyers for having defended me. I also want to thank my wife for her undivided support from the very beginning although there were attempts to shame and disgrace me.”

“I am also thankful to the teachers who came to my support. Thank you all. Alhamdullilah,” said Zainuren, according to NST.

Meanwhile, netizens have responded to the matter, mostly siding with Zainuren saying that such cases should not be tolerated by the judiciary. Some have even suggested that the pupils should face punishment shall they be found guilty of making false allegations with vengeful intentions.