By V.Anbalagan

PUTRAJAYA (Malaysia): A youth who committed incest with his sister after watching pornographic videos will spend the prime years of his life in jail.

The Court of Appeal yesterday dismissed his appeal against the sentence of a High Court which enhanced the jail term to 24 years.

The youth, who is now 22, will also receive three strokes of the rotan.

Court of Appeal judge Datuk James Foong, who sat with Datuk Zainun Ali and Datuk Sulong Matjeraie, said they felt the jail term was appropriate as the offences were serious.

"We are aware that you are young but we will be sending a wrong message that those who commit a similar offence will be jailed only for a few years if the imprisonment term is varied," Foong said of the unanimous decision.

The jail term is to commence from Sept 11, 2004.

He advised the youth to be serious in his religious lessons in order to distinguish right from wrong.

Having come to the appellate court, the youth has finally exhausted his appeal.

With one-third remission, the youth is expected to walk out of prison in 2020 at the age of 34.

On Oct 23, 2004, the Sessions Court sentenced him to eight years' jail each after he pleaded guilty to three counts of incest between January 2002 and July 2004.

However, he served eight years because the court ordered the sentences to run concurrently.

On the third count, the court also ordered him to be given three strokes of the rotan as the youth was aged above 18 when he committed the offence.

The incidents occurred at an unnumbered house in Kampar, Perak, when the girl was aged between 6 and 8 and the accused was aged between 16 and 18.

On appeal against sentence by the public prosecutor, the High Court, on May 27, 2005, maintained the eight-year jail term for each count but ordered them to run consecutively, which meant a total of 24 years.

The three strokes of the rotan were maintained.

Before the High Court, the youth, in mitigation, told the judge that he was spurred to commit the act on his sister after watching pornographic videos.

The youth, who was unrepresented, then appealed to the Court of Appeal against the sentence.

Deputy public prosecutor V. Shoba submitted that the appeal should be disallowed because the offences committed were separate.

Facts of the case revealed a police report was made only after a welfare officer discovered that the victim had been sexually abused.

Their mother had passed away when the incidents took place. The youth had dropped out of school after Form Four and worked in a factory in Gopeng.