kuala lumpar, malaysia ap

A Malaysian court sentenced an Indonesian woman to prison for six months for almost severing her husband's penis as a result of jealousy, police said yesterday.

Umidah Setu, an Indonesian migrant worker living in Malaysia, pleaded guilty in court on Tuesday in the southern city of Johor Bahru to voluntarily causing hurt, said Che Yussof Che Ngah, deputy chief of Johor state's criminal investigations department.

Umidah, a 47-year-old canteen operator, was arrested on Sunday after her husband, who is also from Indonesia, filed a police report claiming she tried to cut off his penis with a knife, Che Yussof said.

Che Yussof said the man received 11 stitches after going to the hospital on his motorcycle for treatment.

Che Yussof said the dispute surfaced because Umidah was jealous of another woman, but he declined to elaborate on whether the man had been having an affair.

The couple have been married for 17 years and have two children, the New Straits Times newspaper said.

Muslim men in Malaysia are allowed to take up to four wives. It was not clear if Umidah will appeal the sentence.