In Malaysia’s landmark stalking case, victim tells court about severe trauma after years of harassment
SHAH ALAM, Jan 17 — Acacia Mardiana Daud, 31, the victim of Malaysia's first stalking case that has gone to trial told the court today that she feared for her life when she was allegedly being stalked and harassed by Mohamad Safiq Rosli, 37.
She disclosed to the Magistrate court here today that she had to lodge four police reports — two in Shah Alam, one in Dang Wangi and one in Damansara before the police took action against the accused.
“Because of this man's stalking and harassment, I have experienced severe trauma and fear for my safety until I became scared to go out, which disrupted my work, daily activities and my future.
“I live in fear,” the victim said at the end of the prosecution's questioning here today.
Lawyer Firthril Hakim Ab Jalil, representing the accused, did not cross-examine the victim.
The victim testified virtually through video conference application Zoom which was shown on a barricaded screen in court to block Safiq from viewing the screen.
Besides physical stalking, a handful of messages including lewd and love messages were sent to her through social media throughout 2017-2023.
On December 19, he was supposed to be sentenced but his guilty plea was rejected by Magistrate Sasha Diana Sabtu, and he was ordered to face a full trial.
The magistrate took note of his medical report from the psychiatric evaluation at Hospital Bahagia, Tanjung Rambutan, Perak, which she had previously ordered Safiq to undergo when he was first charged in August, showed that he may have been of unsound mind at the time the offence was committed.
Safiq, who worked as a graphic designer, was first charged with stalking Acacia on August 10 under Section 507A of the Penal Code.
He originally pleaded not guilty to the accusations that he harassed Acacia online through three messages on X — formerly Twitter — in which he expressed his love for her.
Before his charge, Safiq was supposed to appear in a court in the United Kingdom to be charged there, however, he breached his bail and fled to Malaysia.
His victim told The Star in an interview published on the same day he was charged that she had been stalked by the man since 2016, and that the latter had even stalked her all the way to the UK when she was studying there after failing to find her at her home in Malaysia.
Section 507A of the Penal Code criminalises stalking, whether in person or online and came into force on May 31.
