A GRAVEDIGGER has pleaded not guilty at the Taiping Sessions Court to a charge of physical sexual assault involving a nine-year-old boy, allegedly committed in a mosque toilet last week.
Muhammed Syahril Reza Omar, 43, entered the plea before Judge Nabisha Ibrahim on Thursday. The accused, a widower with three children, is alleged to have committed the offence at around 12.30pm on 11 July in the women's toilet of a mosque in Kamunting, Perak.
He is charged under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 (Act 792), which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years' imprisonment and whipping upon conviction.
Prosecution was led by Assistant Superintendent Shabani Bahari, while the accused was represented by Syed Saifullizan Syed Abd Razak from the National Legal Aid Foundation (YBGK).
The prosecution proposed bail at RM30,000 with additional conditions, including that the accused be barred from contacting, approaching, or interfering with the victim — who has no familial connection to him — and that he report to the nearest police station monthly.
In response, the defence requested a lower bail sum, citing the accused’s limited income of RM400 per month from his allowance as a gravedigger and his responsibility as the sole caregiver to his three children.
The court granted bail at RM8,000 with one surety and imposed the prosecution’s requested conditions: that the accused must not disturb the victim and must report to the police on a monthly basis.
The case is scheduled for mention on 19 August for further case management. - July 17, 2025
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