A man was sentenced to seven months jail for slapping, punching, choking and kicking his wife for not answering his phone call.

Magistrate Haslinda ARaof sentenced Ng Boon Meng, 43, an unemployed man, after he pleaded guilty to voluntarily causing grievous hurt to Tan Suh Huai, 41, an administrative executive at a travel agency.

The accused was charged with the act in their home in Taman Pandan Indah in Kuala Lumpur at 1.30pm on Aug 10, under Section 323 of the Penal Code and could be sentenced under Section 326A of the same code which provides for a maximum sentence of two years jail and fine up to RM4,000 or both.

The court ordered Ng to serve his sentence from the day he was arrested, Aug 11.

According to the facts of the case, on Aug 10 at 1.30pm, the accused returned home and was angry with his wife for not answering his call at 8.15am and the victim said she was not aware of the call as she was at a coffee shop with her friends.

The accused was furious and was unhappy with his wife's excuse and went into a rage by slapping the victim several times, choked her, kicked her in the stomach and pulled her lips while he kept asking why she did not answer his call.

The victim cried and screamed before running to the top floor of the house and called her 17-year-old son before both ran out of the house and lodged a police report.

Investigations revealed that the accused frequently assaulted his wife whenever there was a misunderstanding.

The accused who was not represented told the court he would not repeat his act and appealed to return to his wife to forgive him.

Deputy public prosecutor Raihanah Abdul Razak sought a deterrent punishment because as a husband the accused should treat his wife better and settle any domestic problems without resorting to violence.

- Bernama