Kuala lumpur: A former driving school instructor began serving an eight-year jail sentence today after the Court of Appeal reinstated his conviction for physical sexual assault of a 17-year-old girl in 2021. Lim Yoke Pin, 75, had previously been discharged and acquitted by the High Court of the offence.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, a three-member Court of Appeal bench comprising Justices Datuk Azman Abdullah, Datuk Hayatul Akmal Abdul Aziz, and Datuk Mohd Radzi Abdul Hamid allowed the prosecution's appeal, setting aside Lim's acquittal and reinstating the Sessions Court's decision that convicted him of the offence. Judge Hayatul Akmal, who delivered the court's decision, stated that the victim was consistent in her testimony that Lim had groped her breasts and genitals. She noted that there was no evidence to suggest the victim had a motive to frame Lim.

However, Judge Hayatul Akmal said after considering Lim's age, the court reduced the original 12-year prison sentence and three strokes of the cane imposed by the Sessions Court to an eight-year prison term. She ordered Lim to begin serving this sentence immediately.

On June 9, 2023, the Raub Sessions Court found Lim guilty of physically assaulting the girl in Jalan Desa Damai, Bentong, at 3 pm on March 14, 2021, sentencing him to 12 years in jail and three strokes of the rotan. However, on July 29 of the previous year, the High Court acquitted and discharged Lim, which led the prosecution to appeal to the Court of Appeal.

During the appeal hearing, Deputy Public Prosecutor Zaki Asyraf Zubir argued that the High Court had erred in facts and law by acquitting Lim of the charge. He emphasized that the Sessions Court judge found the victim's testimony to be unusually convincing. Lim's lawyer, Chong Pei Yen, contended that the High Court's decision should be upheld, arguing that the victim did not report the incident to the police immediately but filed a report an hour later.