Mohamad Alaina bin Ibrahim, a 42- year-old local man, was recently sentenced to eight years and six months in jail along with six strokes of the cane after being found guilty of assaulting his girlfriend with multiple weapons and wrongfully confining her to a room.
The victim was reported to have suffered severe injuries from metalpipes, screwdrivers, a hammer, a car jack and a pair of scissors.
The injuries indicated grave abuse on a number of occasions, said the court after examining the evidence, which included medical reports and witness testimony.
The court also believed that the defendant had wrongfully confined the victim to a room for a period of time.
The defendant denied the charges against him, challenging the medical evidence and claiming there was a failure to definitively identify injuries suffered by the victim.
The court also dismissed the defendant’s contention that the victim had fabricated evidence.
The court relied on medical reports related to an incident on June 7, 2020 when the victim was hospitalised. It was found that the defendant had assaulted her during a dispute while travelling from Bandar Seri Begawan to Kuala Belait.
Police launched investigations following the victim’s hospitalisation, and arrested the defendant on June 9, 2020 when he visited the victim at the hospital.
Intermediate Court Judge Harnita Zelda Skinner handed the sentence on Tuesday.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Raihan Nabilah binti Haji Ahmad Ghazali prosecuted the case. – Fadley Faisal
