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BUTTERWORTH: The prosecution of a South Korean pastor accused of outraging the modesty of two men was delayed because he could not understand the charges being read against him.
Jee Jon Hoon, 54, who is speech and hearing impaired and facing two charges of outraging the modesty of two men, did not respond when the charges were read to him and no guilty plea was recorded yesterday.
The case has been postponed until January 18 so that an international sign language interpreter is present to read the charges.
According to the charge, Jee is alleged to have sexually abused a man, then 21, at 12:20 a.m. in a room in Jee’s Kampung Paya apartment in Butterworth on October 13, 2013.
He also faces a second count of outraging the modesty of another man, then 24, between 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. at the same location in July 2017.
Charges under Section 354 of the Penal Code carry a prison term of up to 10 years, a fine or flogging, or two of the penalties, upon conviction.
Judge M. Kalaiarasi set January 18 next year for the mention of the case to have an interpreter provided by the Courthouse read the charges to Jee in international sign language and allowed the defendant to bail RM 5,000 in two bonds for each charge.
Deputy Prosecutor Azlin Zeti Zainal Abidin was indicted while attorney G. Shanmugam represented Jee.
Outside the courtroom, Shanmugam said his client would post bail.
“My client was unable to understand Malaysian Sign Language, as he can only fully understand it through International Sign Language.
“We need an international sign language interpreter as he cannot understand Bahasa Malay.
“The charges were read to him today, but he did not understand the charges.
“He (Jee) faces the possibility of six charges, two today and the rest are still under investigation,” he said.
Bukit Aman CID Director Comm Datuk Huzir Mohamed had said that six police reports, five in Penang and one in Selangor, were filed against the suspect.
“The suspect was initially detained on November 23 and in preventive detention until November 30. He was quarantined until December 8, as he had close contact with a detainee who tested positive for Covid-19.
“He was arrested again and detained until Friday.
“The victims were five men, between 27 and 40 years old, members of an association of people with hearing disabilities.
“The suspect had come to Malaysia at the invitation of the association’s founder to teach the Bible since 1998,” he said, adding that initial investigations revealed that the suspect met the victims while attending religious classes and church activities in Penang. and Selangor.
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