SANDAKAN – Two 13-year-old boys, who have been bullied and assaulted at a boarding school here, had to face death threats as their seniors “terrorised” the duo with metal rods on Monday.
One of the victims’ fathers told Scoop that he had rushed to the school after his son broke down and called him – saying he was scared after the seniors threatened to kill him with rods taken from a broken bed frame and a garbage shovel.
The father, who only wanted to be known as Amru, said he only sent his son to the school for three weeks, but the teen claimed to have been harassed five to six times by several Form 2 and Form 5 students.
“I lost my patience when my son called me on Monday morning crying, and told me his seniors had threatened to kill him. My son was so traumatised that he did not even leave his room for sahoor. He is still traumatised by the incident until now.”
Amru said the death threats took place after the victims reported to a warden about seeing the two seniors, believed to be siblings, escaping school through a drain behind the hostel.
Amru said he had immediately reported the matter to the school administration, and one of the teachers lodged a police report on the same night.
After that, his son revealed more traumatising incidents he suffered at the hands of his seniors.
“They (perpetrators) poured water on his body when he was on the bed, put toothpaste all over his body… they threw rocks at him.
“The school told me the perpetrators have been suspended, but I want them to be expelled from school instead to really teach them a lesson as well as the other bullies.”
Amru said for the time being, he is allowing his son to attend classes but would take him home after school.
Yesterday, Sandakan district police chief Abdul Fuad Abdul Malek in a statement confirmed that the police had received a report on the incident on April 1, at about 10.25pm.
Fuad said the case involved two suspects, aged 14 and 17.
“We have recorded statements from both victims and suspects, and the case will be investigated under Section 506 of the Penal Code for criminal intimidation.”
Just last month, a vocational school in Lahad Datu saw a bullying case that resulted in the death of a 17-year-old boy.
A total of 13 male teens were charged at the magistrate’s court in Lahad Datu under Section 302 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34 of the same act.
The offence carries a death sentence or a 30 to 40 year jail term, and if not sentenced to death, must be whipped up to 12 times, upon conviction.
However, Section 97 of the Child Act 2001 states that imprisonment would be imposed upon a child offender in lieu of capital punishment. – April 4, 2024