SUNGAI PETANI: A labourer, who was captured in a viral video molesting a young girl at a fun fair here, pleaded guilty to a charge of sexual harassment at the Sessions Court today.
The 44-year-old labourer, made the guilty plea before Judge N. Priscilla Hemamalini.
He was charged under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 which carries maximum 20 years' imprisonment and whipping, upon conviction.
He was alleged to have committed the offence at Euro Happy Fun Fair site next to Kuala Muda police headquarters about 11pm on Jan 20.
However, the court set Mac 1 for mention before passing down the sentence pending a psychiatric report on the accused.
The court also denied the accused a bail pending the mention date.
The prosecution was carried out by prosecuting officer Assistant Superintendent Shamsul Singring.
It was reported that police had detained the accused, who is also a friend to the victim's family, following two police reports lodged on the incident after the video went viral on social media.
In the video, the accused was seen holding a child on his lap and kissing her, with loud music playing in the background.
The video was first uploaded by Durian Media on Facebook. It claimed that the incident took place at a funfair in Taman Ria in Sungai Petani.