KUCHING, May 15 — The Sessions Court here has ordered a 19-year-old student to be sent to Henry Gurney School Kuching until he reaches the age of 21 for having child sexual abuse materials on his smartphone.

Judge Musli Ab Hamid also ordered the youth offender to undergo rehabilitative counselling throughout his detention period at Henry Gurney School Kuching in accordance with Section 26(1) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act (Soaca) 2017.

The court further ordered the offender to undergo police supervision in Bau for two years upon his release from the institution pursuant to Section 27(1) of Soaca 2017.

In addition, the court instructed the reform school to ensure the youth offender completes the Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM).

The court made the verdict after hearing the teenager’s social report from the Welfare Department.

On April 10, the accused pleaded guilty to two charges framed under the Soaca 2017.

For the first charge, he was accused of participating in a business related to child pornography under Section 8, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years and not less than three strokes of the cane upon conviction.

For the second charge under Section 10, he was accused of possessing child sexual abuse materials on his smartphone.

The offence is punishable with imprisonment of up to five years, a fine of up to RM10,000, or both upon conviction.

Both offences were committed at around 9.10pm on April 7 in a Bau village.

It was previously reported that the teenager was arrested during a raid in Bau following intelligence gathered by the police.

Bau police chief Supt Mohd Haide A Rahman had said inspections of the teenager’s device uncovered 936 obscene videos and 4,035 pornographic images.

“Initial investigations found that the suspect is believed to have accessed pornographic websites involving adult and child content, apart from carrying out the sale of such materials through the Telegram application and promoting them on social media platforms,” he said.

He added that the suspect admitted using the activity as a source of income.

Deputy public prosecutor Marvind Kaliyani appeared for the prosecution while the accused was unrepresented. — The Borneo Post

REMBAU, May 14 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is expected to make several special announcements for youths during the National Youth Day (HBN) 2026 celebration at X Park Sendayan tomorrow.

Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mohammed Taufiq Johari said the prime minister is scheduled to officiate the three-day programme themed ‘Empowering MADANI Youth’ at 9 am.

“Several initiatives would also be launched during the celebration, including the Youth Development Action Plan involving all ministries, which had been discussed at the Cabinet Committee on Youth and Sports Development,” he told reporters here, today.

He said youths were urged to come in large numbers tomorrow morning as HBN would also be held in stages according to states and districts throughout Malaysia, with a target of 4.3 million participations through various programmes implemented nationwide.

According to him, this year’s celebration would feature five main segments, comprising job creation and employment opportunities, leadership, volunteerism and internationalisation, active Malaysia, innovation and digital, as well as culture, arts and music.

Earlier, Mohammed Taufiq officiated the closing ceremony and prize presentation for the 38th Institute of Youth and Sports Skills Training (ILKBS) sports championship held at the National Youth Advanced Skills Institute Chembong (IKTBN Chembong) here.

In his speech at the event, he said his ministry is committed to ensuring that the talents of more than 12,000 IKTBN students nationwide would continue to be empowered and fully utilised, while strengthening their career marketability after graduation.

“They are the future TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) assets of the country. Looking at current developments, job opportunities are no longer focused solely on those who excel academically, but skills-based fields are becoming increasingly important and must also be mastered.

“We aim for the talents of these students not only to be focused on the local industry, but also to become sought after internationally. Currently, the graduate employability rate among these students has reached 97 per cent,” he added. — Bernama

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