MELAKA: The founder of a tahfiz education centre here, a Singaporean, has claimed trial at the Ayer Keroh Sessions Court here to five charges of sexual assault and committing unnatural sex on students.
Muhammad Firdaous Abdul Rashif, 40, was charged in two proceedings presided over by Sessions judges Darmafikri Abu Adam and Mohd Sabri Ismail on Wednesday (May 17).
He was arrested together with his 36-year-old younger brother for alleged sexual assault and psychical abuse of six male students at two religious centres in Melaka.
The younger brother is still under remand.
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Muhammad Firdaous was slapped with three charges of sexually assaulting three students aged 13, 14 and 15 in a room at a teacher's house in Tahfiz Al-Islah in Tanjung Minyak here on July 20 last year and March this year.
The charges were framed under Sections 14(a) and 14(b) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017.
The offence carries a jail term of up to 20 years and whipping upon conviction.
Two other charges against the accused were framed under Section 377C of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment and whipping upon conviction.
He was alleged to have performed unnatural sex acts against two male students at the same location in March.
Counsel Fahmy Sulaiman, who represented the accused, appealed to both courts to impose a lower bail as his client had two wives and six children.
He was granted bail of RM20,000 at one court but no bail was granted at the other.
Both courts fixed June 19 as the next mention date.
On Friday (May 12), The Star reported that two Singaporean brothers had been detained by Melaka police for alleged sexual assault and psychical abuse on six boys.
Melaka police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Zainol Samah said the elder brother, the principal of two tahfiz centres in Tanjung Minyak and Alor Gajah here, had allegedly sexually abused three boys while his younger sibling, the warden, had sexually abused three other boys.
DCP Zainol said six police reports were lodged between 6.30pm and 9.13pm on Thursday (May 11) against the duo.
