Yong's right to fair trial in rape case jeopardised, apex court hears
Farah Solhi
Published: Aug 27, 2025 4:36 PM
Updated: 7:57 PM
Former Tronoh assemblyperson Paul Yong has claimed that his right to a fair trial was jeopardised during his rape case proceedings at the Ipoh High Court in 2022.
This was said to be due to the trial judge invoking Section 265A of the Criminal Procedure Code at the time.
Yong’s lawyer, Salim Bashir, submitted to a panel of three Federal Court judges today that by invoking the section, the former lawmaker’s right to examine the demeanour of his accuser during cross-examination was deprived.
Section 265A allows witnesses to testify anonymously if the court finds their safety was at risk.
“Being able to see the face of a witness is the most important factor in cross-examination, which, in my view, this discretion ought to be very sparingly exercised and with great caution, to ensure a fair hearing.
“(More so that) the Court of Appeal’s minority decision (in Yong’s earlier appeal) said an accused person in a criminal trial is entitled to confront his accuser, so that he may cross-examine and challenge their evidence,” Salim said.
Lawyer Salim Bashir
The lawyer was making an oral submission to the panel chaired by Chief Justice Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh, Nordin Hassan, and Hanipah Farikullah this morning.
Hearing on final appeal postponed
Yong’s appeal today is his final attempt to strike out his conviction and jail sentence.
The panel, however, adjourned the proceedings after hearing submissions from Yong’s counsel and fixed Aug 29 for case management, to set a new hearing date for the prosecution to reply.
The Ipoh High Court found him guilty of the crime on July 27, 2022, and sentenced him to 13 years’ jail and two strokes of the cane after finding his defence failed to raise a reasonable doubt at the end of its case.
Yong was allowed to postpone his jail sentence pending his appeal, and he was released on RM30,000 bail.
His charge of raping the 23-year-old maid in a room on the first floor of his house on July 7, 2019, was framed under Section 376(1) of the Penal Code, which provides a maximum of 20 years of jail time and liable to caning.
Two years later, on March 1, 2024, he failed to get his conviction quashed after the Court of Appeal judges’ majority 2-1 decision maintained his guilty verdict.
However, the panel unanimously reduced his 13-year jail term to eight years, and maintained the two strokes of the cane as well as his stay of execution.
Additional evidence
Yong’s lead counsel Hisyam Teh Pok Teik said the Federal Court should admit a letter from the victim as additional evidence and consider it in reaching its decision.
The letter was affirmed by her lawyer, who heard the victim “confessing” that she had lied about the rape claims because she wanted to terminate her employment at that time and return to her homeland.
The Federal Court, on Nov 12 last year, allowed Yong’s application to adduce new evidence, which is a five-page document, after finding that they appear to indicate that the victim may have provided false testimony at Yong’s trial.
The panel, chaired by judge Harmindar Singh Dhaliwal at that time, sent the case back to the High Court to consider the new evidence.
The victim’s lawyer Pathu Rahman testified in Ipoh High Court on February 5 this year, where he said the victim had sought his legal advice on May 20, 2024, and confessed that the evidence against Yong was false.
He then said he had advised her to withdraw the false evidence given in court, as it is better to state the truth than to have an innocent person unjustly convicted.
On March 7 this year, the High Court did not admit the new evidence for consideration and maintained Yong’s conviction, after the judge found it constituted hearsay and could not be admitted as valid evidence, in deferring the case to the Federal Court to make its final ruling on Yong’s fate.
The lawyer was making an oral submission to the panel chaired by Chief Justice Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh, Nordin Hassan, and Hanipah Farikullah this morning.
Hearing on final appeal postponed
Yong’s appeal today is his final attempt to strike out his conviction and jail sentence.
The panel, however, adjourned the proceedings after hearing submissions from Yong’s counsel and fixed Aug 29 for case management, to set a new hearing date for the prosecution to reply.
The Ipoh High Court found him guilty of the crime on July 27, 2022, and sentenced him to 13 years’ jail and two strokes of the cane after finding his defence failed to raise a reasonable doubt at the end of its case.
Yong was allowed to postpone his jail sentence pending his appeal, and he was released on RM30,000 bail.
His charge of raping the 23-year-old maid in a room on the first floor of his house on July 7, 2019, was framed under Section 376(1) of the Penal Code, which provides a maximum of 20 years of jail time and liable to caning.
Two years later, on March 1, 2024, he failed to get his conviction quashed after the Court of Appeal judges’ majority 2-1 decision maintained his guilty verdict.
However, the panel unanimously reduced his 13-year jail term to eight years, and maintained the two strokes of the cane as well as his stay of execution.
Additional evidence
Yong’s lead counsel Hisyam Teh Pok Teik said the Federal Court should admit a letter from the victim as additional evidence and consider it in reaching its decision.
The letter was affirmed by her lawyer, who heard the victim “confessing” that she had lied about the rape claims because she wanted to terminate her employment at that time and return to her homeland.
The Federal Court, on Nov 12 last year, allowed Yong’s application to adduce new evidence, which is a five-page document, after finding that they appear to indicate that the victim may have provided false testimony at Yong’s trial.
The panel, chaired by judge Harmindar Singh Dhaliwal at that time, sent the case back to the High Court to consider the new evidence.
The victim’s lawyer Pathu Rahman testified in Ipoh High Court on February 5 this year, where he said the victim had sought his legal advice on May 20, 2024, and confessed that the evidence against Yong was false.
He then said he had advised her to withdraw the false evidence given in court, as it is better to state the truth than to have an innocent person unjustly convicted.
On March 7 this year, the High Court did not admit the new evidence for consideration and maintained Yong’s conviction, after the judge found it constituted hearsay and could not be admitted as valid evidence, in deferring the case to the Federal Court to make its final ruling on Yong’s fate.
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