TAWAU: The Sessions Court acquitted and discharged a teacher of three counts of sexual assault involving three female students three years ago.
Judge Ahmad Faizadh Yahaya made the decision after ruling that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against Sanyzam Dabal, 49.
The court also ordered that Sanyzam’s bail money be returned.
In his judgment, Ahmad Faizadh said the time frames specified in the first and second charges were too broad, prejudicing the accused’s ability to raise an alibi defence.
He said other prosecution witnesses did not support the testimony of two of the victims and also contradicted their interviews recorded at the Child Interview Centre, the testimony of one victim’s mother and the evidence of the investigating officer.
The judge said investigators also failed to call a pupil who allegedly witnessed one of the incidents to testify in court, despite having recorded a statement from the child.
The investigating officer also failed to inspect or retrieve an “MMI” book mentioned by one of the victims in her testimony.
The victim had testified that the sexual harassment occurred during an Islamic education lesson after she failed to complete the MMI book.
The court also noted that the investigating officer failed to question two pupils who were said to have accompanied the victim when she reported the incident to her mother, as well as several Year Six pupils who allegedly informed a teacher about the matter.
Ahmad Faizadh said Sanyzam had told the investigating officer in his statement that he had never instructed anyone to write in the MMI book.
However, investigators did not pursue the matter, which the judge said demonstrated lapses in the police probe.
Sanyzam was charged under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act with three counts of committing physical sexual assault against three female pupils at the school where he taught between March and November 2023.