Malaysian man faces 12,000 years in jail for allegedly sexually assaulting his teenage daughter 626 times

A Malaysian man could face a sentence of over 12,000 years in jail if found guilty of 626 charges of sex assaults against his teenage daughter, officials said today.

It took two days for court officials to read out all 626 charges against the 36-year-old divorcee. They finished reading the charges this afternoon. The charges include 599 charges of sodomy against the 15-year-old girl, as well as counts of incest, rape and other sex crimes.

The man is said to have sexually assaulted his eldest daughter, several times a day in their apartment in Sungai Way, Petaling Jaya between January and July this year. The accused divorced the girl's mother two years ago and had custody of the victim while his two younger daughters are staying with their mother. It was his ex-wife who reported his alleged crimes to the police and the man was arrested on July 26.

The suspect pleaded not guilty to the charges and the case will now proceed to trial. For each charge of sodomy, the father can be punished with a maximum jail term of 20 years, as well as caning. He faces a rape charge that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, and 30 other charges of sexual assault, each punishable by up to 20 years in jail.

"He faces a prison sentence of over 12,000 years," Aimi Syazwani, a deputy public prosecutor, told AFP.

Judge Yong Zarida Sazali denied the man bail after prosecutors warned there was a danger of him fleeing or intimidating witnesses.  The suspect cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim.