The 42-year-old man, who works in construction, received six lashes after being convicted by a Sharia court in the conservative state of Terengganu (east), the Bernama agency explained.
It was the first time in Malaysia that a flogging sentence, ordered by a sharia court, was carried out outside the court, according to the agency.
An AFP journalist saw the man, in an orange prison jumpsuit, being taken to the mosque in a van after Friday prayers. In the presence of a silent crowd, he entered the building to receive this corporal punishment.
Earlier this week, the Malaysian Bar Association expressed “deep concern” over the conviction.
“Such punishments strip individuals of their dignity“, said the association in a press release.
Malaysia has a dual legal system, Islamic courts can handle certain matters concerning Muslim citizens.
Such flogging sentences ordered by a sharia court are rare but not unusual in Malaysia.
Two women convicted of having sex were flogged in front of more than 100 people in an Islamic court in 2018.
The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia ruled last week that “sentences inflicting physical violence and public humiliation“had”no place in a modern justice system“.
