Madrasah chairman claims trial to molesting 3 girls

2026-03-06 - 07:13

Madrasah chairman Salleh Hamzah pleaded not guilty to all the charges read to him separately in the Taiping sessions and magistrates’ courts. (Facebook pic) PETALING JAYA: The chairman of a madrasah claimed trial in the Taiping sessions and magistrates’ courts today to four charges of molesting three girls, including two minors. Salleh Hamzah, 70, pleaded not guilty to all the charges read to him separately before sessions court judge Noor Sakinah Haroon Arashid and magistrate Ahmad Hamdi Mustafar, Harian Metro reported. Salleh was charged in the sessions court with two counts of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl at a religious education centre at Kampung Batu Teguh in August and September 2022. The offence under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 carries a penalty of up to 20 years’ imprisonment and whipping, upon conviction. Sakinah granted him bail of RM12,000 and ordered him to report to the police every month. Salleh was also charged with sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl at the same location in February 2022, with the charge framed under the same provision. He was granted bail of RM8,000. In the magistrates’ court, he was charged with using criminal force to outrage a 19-year-old girl’s modesty by touching her chest, buttocks and private parts at the same location in February 2022. The charge was framed under Section 354 of the Penal Code, which provides for up to 10 years in prison, a fine, whipping, or any two of these punishments, if convicted. Salleh’s lawyer, Hari Prassaad Rao, asked the courts to impose a lower bail amount, saying his client did not draw a salary as a madrasah chairman, had to support his wife, and was undergoing treatment for nerve and stomach-related illnesses. Last month, Salleh was charged in the Alor Gajah magistrates’ court with outraging the modesty of a female follower in 2025.