ENT Specialist Jailed Seven Years and Caned Seven Times for Child Sexual Assault

KUALA LUMPUR, JULY 2026 – An ear, nose and throat specialist was sentenced to seven years in prison and seven strokes of the cane after being found guilty of seven charges involving the physical sexual assault of a male child patient.

Sessions Court judge Mohd Zul Zakiquddin Zulkifli imposed the sentence on Mohd Safwan Mohd Soffian, 42, after ruling that the defence had failed to raise reasonable doubt against the prosecution’s case at the end of the defence proceedings.

For each of the first six charges, the court sentenced the specialist doctor to five years in prison, one stroke of the cane and two years of police supervision. He received seven years in prison, one stroke and a two-year police supervision order for the seventh charge.

The court ordered all prison sentences to run concurrently from July 19, resulting in an effective custodial term of seven years. The separate corporal punishments imposed across the seven charges amount to seven strokes of the cane.

According to the charges, the offences were committed against a male child who was aged 11 and 12 when the incidents occurred. The offences reportedly took place inside a consultation room at a private hospital in Kuala Terengganu in September, October and November 2022, as well as April 2023.

The first six charges were brought under Section 14(a) of Malaysia’s Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, while the seventh charge was filed under Section 14(d) of the same legislation. The offences carry a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison and whipping upon conviction.

The prosecution was conducted by deputy public prosecutors Ahmad Hafizuddin Manjur Ahmad and Nur Azhani Azman. The convicted doctor was represented by lawyers Ahmad Kamal Abu Bakar, Arik Zakri Abdul Kadir and Ahmad Fairuz Jusoh.

The child’s identity has not been disclosed. Protecting the privacy of minors remains essential in reporting cases involving sexual offences against children.

The conviction concludes proceedings at the Sessions Court level, although any further legal action would depend on whether an appeal is filed through the Malaysian judicial system.