A tahfiz teacher has been sentenced to a cumulative 102 years in prison and 12 strokes of the cane after pleading guilty to 10 charges involving unnatural sex and sodomy against three students in Bukit Rambai last year.
However, as the Ayer Keroh Sessions Court ordered all the sentences to run concurrently, Muhammad Aimanuddin Julaihi, 31, will effectively serve 11 years in prison, starting from the date of his arrest on August 3.
Aimanuddin, who was unrepresented by a lawyer, admitted to all 10 charges after they were read before Sessions Court Judge Rohatul Akmar Abdullah during proceedings today.
The court initially imposed 10 years’ imprisonment and one stroke of the cane for each of the first eight charges, while the remaining two charges carried 11 years’ imprisonment and two strokes each. Taken individually, the sentences amount to 102 years and 12 strokes.
The eight charges involved allegations that Aimanuddin intentionally committed acts of unnatural intercourse against a male student who was 13 at the time and without the student’s consent.
The offences were committed at several locations around the tahfiz centre, including a bedroom, office, dining hall, library and a narrow passage, between May and July 2025.
For the remaining two charges, Aimanuddin admitted to sodomising two other students, who were aged 14 and 16 at the time. The offences allegedly took place in his room at around midnight in July 2025 and inside the library at about 8am in May 2025.
All 10 charges were framed under Section 377C of the Penal Code, which carries a prison sentence of between five and 20 years, as well as whipping upon conviction.
During mitigation, Aimanuddin appealed for leniency and asked the court to impose the shortest possible sentence, saying he was the second of three siblings and responsible for supporting his mother and an ailing brother.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Nor Asnini Kamarudin, however, urged the court to impose a lengthy custodial sentence, pointing out that the offences involved three separate child victims.
She said a stern punishment was necessary given the seriousness of sexual offences and the need to deter similar crimes.
“The court and prosecution have a responsibility to teach the accused and society a lesson so that such offences are not repeated in the future,” she said.
With the sentences ordered to run concurrently, Aimanuddin will serve 11 years behind bars and receive 12 strokes of the cane, rather than serving the cumulative 102-year term.
