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Two heroes were rewarded for their gallant efforts that lead to the arrest of two devils in the kidnap, assault and rape of a Universiti Malaysia Sabah student last week.
The two heroes are Sylvester John and Geramias Gunir. Syabas to them.
The two devils are Mohd Sahrizal Suhaili and Mohd Ariffin Bidin who both have been sentenced by Sabah Sessions Court for a long jail terms and rotan strokes.
Kota Kinabalu: Lesser mortals would have looked the other way but farmers Sylvester John and Geramias Gunir thought nothing about their own safety when they came face-to-face with two wanted men.
Thanks to their help, police managed to arrest Mohd Sahrizal Suhaili, 21, and Mohd Ariffin Bidin, 29, for the kidnap, assault and rape of a Universiti Malaysia Sabah student last week.
State Police Commissioner Datuk Noor Rashid Ibrahim handed them appreciation letters and cash rewards.
Geramias, 50, from Kg Sunsuron, Tambunan, was resting with his brother in a hut next to his rubber farm, about one kilometre from where the criminals had crashed after a high-speed chase with police on April 16, when an injured Sahrizal emerged from the jungle seeking their help.
"He was bleeding just above his right eye and his hand was swollen É he seemed pale, tired and edgy," said the former assistant manager of a plantation.
Immediately instinct kicked in. "After being informed to be on the lookout for suspicious characters by patrolling policemen earlier, we had a strong feeling that this could be the person. He told us that his motorcycle crashed and that police were looking for him," he said. Geramias told his brother to keep the man calm and relaxed while he slipped away to the main road where he found a police MPV unit.
Police rushed to the area, parked their vehicle a distance away, and crept up on the criminal. "The man really did not have a clue we were on to him...earlier we said things like kasian oh kau (we feel sorry for you).
"The police were very professional...they sneaked up on the man and apprehended him, he did not resist, it's not like he had a chance anyway," he said.
48-year-old Sylvester from Kg Mansurulung, Tambunan, meanwhile, ran into the second criminal, Ariffin, the next morning.
He recalled how he had to make an effort to stay calm and composed as he talked the wanted man into believing that he would be free at the end of the day.
But instead he delivered Ariffin in his aging Nissan C20 van into the arms of waiting police at a roadblock. "I tried to ambil hati (draw his trust) and he seemed to be convinced," he said.
Sylvester said earlier while he waited for a relative in Kg Rompon, the man had emerged from the jungle behind a bus stop and approached him, asking if he could hitch a ride to town.
"I almost immediately recognised him (so) I told him 'no problem', only that I have to wait for my relative before we can leave," he said, adding police had also showed residents there a photo of the criminal.
"He asked me if I had heard of an accident here recently and I pretended not to know anything.
"He then told me it was actually him who was involved in the mishap, and that police shot his tyres, trying to catch him for selling smuggled cigarettes."
Sylvester played along.
"I sympathised with him and said the police did not need to do that because contraband cigarettes could be found anywhere."
They left after his relative showed up but he deliberately picked a road near the Tambunan Golf Club, knowing there would be a roadblock there.
The man tried to jump out from the van on seeing they were approaching the roadblock. "I quickly said it was okay, that I knew the policemen, and told him to duck so police cannot see him.
"But at the same time I stepped on the gas, worried that he might jump out, and also flashed my headlights at the police."
When he brought the van to a halt, Sylvester said the man immediately opened the door and hurried out. "But two policemen were already waiting for him there. He resisted arrest, resulting in all of them falling into a puddle of mud but was later subdued."
Sylvester insisted he was never worried about his safety, confident that if he could bring the man to the roadblock, the police would take care of the rest.
"I am very proud to receive a commendation from the police. This kind of appreciation will surely encourage others to help the police in future," he said, beaming with pride.
Imagine a girl being abducted by two men who were high on Syabu and raped and still alive to see the culprit being punished by the law. Despite her ordeal and pain, she survived. Most abducted woman ended being both rape and murder victim.
Syabas to Sabah Session Court in expediting the case and Keningau police for arresting the kidnappers. It was also pure luck that Keningau police stumbled upon the kidnapper's car and gave a chase.
The first devil, Mohd Arifin Bidin, 29, was sentenced to 56 years' jail and 25 strokes of the rotan, while another devil Mohd Sahrizal Suhaili, 21, was given a 45-year jail term and 20 lashes.
Frankly, for their hideous crime, Mohd Arifin and Mohd Sahrizal should be each mettled with 100 years jail term and 100 strokes of the rotan.
And for Kota Kinabalu police, a big booo for them for insufficient patrols, lack of crime prevention jobs and unable to control the menaces of Syabu in Kota Kinabalu.
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KOTA KINABALU: Two men who kidnapped a 22-year-old university student, raped her and forced her to perform oral sex on them were jailed a total of 101 years and ordered to be given 45 strokes of the rotan.
Mohd Arifin Bidin, 29, was sentenced to 56 years' jail and 25 strokes of the rotan, while his friend Mohd Sahrizal Suhaili, 21, was given a 45-year jail term and 20 lashes.
The sentences were meted out by Sessions Court judge Duncan Sikodol after the duo pleaded guilty to eight charges of kidnapping, raping, forcing to perform oral sex and causing grievous hurt to the girl.
Both accused were unrepresented, while senior federal counsel Suhaimi Ibrahim appeared for the prosecution.
Mohd Arifin and Mohd Sahrizal were jointly charged with kidnapping the girl, a second year student of Universiti Malaysia Sabah, at 6.50pm on April 15 at Kingfisher Park. Each received sentences of five years' jail for this.
They were also jointly charged with causing grievous hurt to the girl between 6.50pm and 5am while travelling from Kingfisher Park here to Kampung Rompon in Tambunan. They were each sentenced to five years' jail and ordered to be given five strokes of the cane for this charge.
Separate charges were framed against the two accused for raping and forcing the victim to perform oral sex.
Mohd Sahrizal, an unemployed from Kota Belud, was charged with raping the girl between 6.50pm and 10pm on April 15 at the old Kota Kinabalu-Tambunan road and forcing her to perform oral sex on him at the same time and place.
He received 20 years' imprisonment and 10 strokes of the rotan for the former and 15 years' jail and five lashes for the latter.
Mohd Arifin, a fishmonger from Bongawan, was charged with raping the girl twice between 6.50pm and 10pm on April 15 at the old Kota Kinabalu-Tambunan road and between 2am and 4am on April 16 at the same place. He was sentenced to jail terms of 23 years' and ordered caned 10 times for each of the charges.
Sikodol ordered the jail sentences for both accused to run concurrently.
Kota Kinabalu: The Sessions Court here on Thursday heard how two local men had kidnapped a 22-year-old Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) student in a stolen car, then assaulted, sexually abused and raped her during a 10-hour ordeal which only ended after police came to her rescue last week.
Mohd Ariffin Bidin, 29, and Mohd Sahrizal Suhaili, 21, who claimed they were driven by Satan to commit the heinous crimes, which sent shock waves across Sabah, felt the full brunt of the law by the time proceedings came to end at the courthouse.
Altogether Ariffin was handed a 59-year prison sentence along with 35 strokes of the cane, while Sahrizal was meted a total prison sentence of 48 years and 35 lashes of the cane.
Arifin, from Kampung Tarap, Bongawan, will however only serve 31 years behind bars and Sahrizal, of Kampung Pirasan, Kota Belud, 28 years as the court ordered the prison terms for some of the offences to run concurrently.
Ariffin, a mechanic, and Sahrizal, unemployed, pleaded guilty before Judge Duncan Sikodol to all the charges.
Senior Federal Counsel (SFC) Suhaimi Ibrahim appeared for the prosecution.
They were jailed five years and fined RM1,000 in default five months' jail each for jointly kidnapping the student at 6.50pm on April 15, this year at the Kingfisher Roundabout, Jalan Bangka-Bangka, Likas.
Both were also sentenced to five years' jail plus five strokes of the cane for voluntarily causing grievous hurt to the student.
They admitted committing the offence between 6.50pm and 5am on April 16, this year at the Kingfisher Roundabout and Kampung Rompon, Tambunan.
Sikodol ordered the sentences for kidnapping and causing grievous hurt to run concurrently.
Ariffin was handed 23 years and 10 strokes of the cane for raping the student between 6.50pm and 10pm on April 15, along Jalan Kota Kinabalu-Tambunan.
He was also given the same punishment for raping the student between 2am and 4am on April 16, also along Jalan Kota Kinabalu-Tambunan.
The sentences were, however, ordered to run concurrently but consecutively with the five years' jail for the kidnapping charge.
Sahrizal was sentenced to 20 years' jail plus 10 strokes of the cane for raping the student between 6.50pm and 10pm on April 15, along Jalan Kota Kinabalu and Jalan Tambunan.
He was also jailed 15 years plus five strokes of the cane for committing carnal intercourse against the order of nature to the student between 6pm and 10pm on April 15, also along Jalan Kota Kinabalu and Jalan Tambunan.
The sentences were ordered to run concurrently but consecutively with the five years' imprisonment for kidnapping the student.
Ariffin was also sentenced to 51 months' jail and fined RM15,000 in default 18 months' imprisonment when he pleaded guilty in the Magistrate's Court to stealing three cars.
Sahrizal, too, was jailed by the Magistrate's Court to a total of three years' jail and RM10,000 fine in default 14 months' jail for stealing two cars.
Both will serve the sentences imposed by the Magistrate's Court consecutively with those meted out by the Sessions Court.
In presenting the facts of the cases, SFC Suhaimi told the court that police investigations revealed both accused had planned to commit the crimes using the vehicle that they had stolen.
SFC Suhaimi said they approached the student from behind with Ariffin behind the wheel. Sahrizal dragged her into the car and they sped off towards the city centre.
He said the victim had tried and struggled to escape but was kicked, beaten, bitten and punched by Sahrizal.
Ariffin then drove towards Keningau and on the way tied the student's hands with masking tape and, at the same time, Sahrizal cut her clothes to strip her.
SFC Suhaimi said that while they were passing Gunung Emas (Mile 29, Jalan Kota Kinabalu-Tambunan), the student tried to escape by opening the door while Sahrizal was pulling down her jeans but he pulled her inside the car. He also kicked her abdomen and head.
During the struggle, the binding on the girl's hand broke but Sahrizal tied her hands again using her brassiere and panty before raping her.
According to SFC Suhaimi, it was the first rape incident. He said Sahrizal also forced the girl to perform oral sex and sexually abused her.
The SFC also told the court that Sahrizal and Ariffin then switched places in the car without stopping it.
He told the court that Ariffin then raped the student between 6.50pm and 10pm and repeated the act for the second time between 2am and 4am while they stopped at a place along the road.
Suhaimi said the student, who was in dire pain all over her body because of the rape and assault, pleaded to her captors to release her and send her to hospital but ignored by them.
She continued pleading to them until they were tracked down by Keningau police.
Suhaimi said Ariffin also had changed the car's registration number from SAA 4558 N to SAA 1558 N.
In mitigation, Hamid Ismail, who was the duty counsel for both accused, pleaded for an appropriate sentence for them saying their pleading guilty had saved the court time and expenses.
He said both accused also regretted their actions.
Sahrizal and Ariffin also pleaded for a lenient sentence.
When asked by the judge why they committed the offences, both said they were under the influence of alcohol and Syabu. Ariffin added that they were overcome by evil lusts.
Meanwhile, SFC Suhaimi urged the court to pass deterrent sentences to both accused.
"Can we bring back the good time of the victim, the glow and shine of the girl? She will forever have this trauma of having to go through hell. Who should be protected? The victim or the accused."
"The public interest demand them to be severely punished under the law.
Even the maximum sentence meted out cannot bring back the girl's virgin status," SFC Suhaimi said.
He said not only they hurt the girl but also the public with what they had done, adding the bite marks on the victim's face by the accused could be there for the rest of her life.
"At least this court knows how long the accused will be behind bars at least until her natural years. The victim in now 22 years old, a university student, she should have a bright future," said the SFC, in urging the court to impose severe punishments on the accused.
He proposed that both accused's jail sentences to be consecutive after the expiry of the jail sentence for car theft imposed on them earlier by the Magistrate's Court.
After the proceeding, Sahrizal and Ariffin were whisked to the Kepayan prison.
SFC Suhaimi was assisted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Raja Zaizul Raja Zaharudin and Assistant Public Prosecutors Hasmizulizam Hamidon and Effizah Ernie Idris.
Kudos to the Selangor police for acting fast and nabbed those criminals for abducting a young girls. Malaysia has been plagued with cases of children abductions and abuses and police are usually slow to response or unable to solve those cases.
To the Selangor police, throw all the law books at those abductors. In fact, those the books selves at them. Children abduction is a very mean and inhuman crime. Make sure the abductors get maximum punishment.
PETALING JAYA: It would have been another Nurin Jazlin Jazimin or Sharlinie Mohd Nashar case, but this time alert passers-by plus swift police action prevented a five-year-old girl from being the next victim of abduction.
The incident took place in Kampung Datuk Harun at 1.15am yesterday when three men abducted the girl right from the doorstep of her house and sped off.
Police who were informed of the incident at 5.30am mobilised their task force as well as alerted residents in the suburbs.
Within minutes, residents in the village provided police with details and the make of the vehicle which they saw speeding off.
Four people including a woman were arrested at 11.30am and the girl was rescued moments later at a house also in Kampung Datuk Harun.
Selangor CPO Deputy Comm Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar said swift response by the villagers enabled police to close down on the abductors that led to their arrests.
“The police together with the local residents mounted a door-to-door search as well as conducted road blocks within the area and surrounding neighbourhoods.
“Initial investigations revealed that the woman is believed to be a close relative of the girl and we are investigating them for abduction,” he said.
DCP Khalid said that police were grateful to the residents for their alertness and their cooperation in providing valuable information that enabled police to solve the case within hours.
He, however, took to task the girl’s father who only lodged a report some four hours after the abduction.
“Every second is very important to us and lodging a report four hours after an incident like this could have resulted in the girl being taken out of the country,” he added.
The era of procrastination, of half-measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays, is coming to its close. In its place we are entering a period of consequences - Winston Churchill
