Rumah Bonda Founder Siti Bainun Found Guilty Of Abuse, Neglect
Siti Bainun has been sentenced to 22 years in jail but will only serve 12 as the sentences are to run concurrently.
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The founder of Rumah Bonda Siti Bainun Ahd Razali has been found guilty on two counts of neglecting and abusing a teen with Down syndrome.
The teen, known as Bella, was neglected and abused two years ago and according to reports by news media, Sessions Court Judge Izralizam Sanusi said the victim was abused and neglected to a point she showed signs of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
The Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur this morning delivered the verdict at the end of the defence’s case.
The Malay Mail reported that the judge said the defence had also failed to cast reasonable doubt against the prosecution’s case.
He said:
I have decided that the prosecution has successfully proved their case beyond reasonable doubt and therefore I now find the accused guilty and convict them on the first and second charges.
Sessions Court Judge Izralizam Sanusi
Siti Bainun has been sentenced to 22 years in jail but will only serve 12 as the sentences are to run concurrently.
It was also reported that Siti Bainun’s defence had asked the Sessions Court to consider her body weight and health problems before meting out her sentence.
Her lawyer, Mohammad Farhan, also argued that a light sentence should be imposed on the grounds that the client has repented.
As reported by Berita Harian, he said:
If a prison sentence is imposed on her, it will affect her health. The prison sentence can be replaced by the maximum fine, as contained in the law.
Mohammad Farhan
Back in 2021, photos of then 13-year-old Bella’s injuries were being widely circulated on Twitter and Facebook.
A one-minute long video showing a woman behind a camera tearfully asking if Bella was okay, as she carefully fished for more information about the origin of Bella’s injuries, also went viral causing an uproar among Malaysians.
In the video, Bella was seen taking off a long sleeve shirt which exposed several wounds that seemed like burns and several others that were bleeding.
According to an older article by Sinar Harian, Bella was previously living at a government-run home but was allowed to be cared for by an individual who wanted to be her guardian.
In June of 2022, news broke that witnesses claimed that the founder of Rumah Bonda Siti Bainun had held down the chin of a Down syndrome girl and force-fed her with fried rice that was mixed with a lot of chillies.
Another witness told the court that Bella had been fed a pot of rice mixed with vinegar, turmeric, salt, soy sauce, chilli and chilli flakes, as well as rotten fried chicken, by Siti Bainun during the fasting month.
The trial has attracted nationwide attention, including that of Tunku Mahkota Johor Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, who appointed lawyers to hold a watching brief.
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