Witness tells court TV9 exec did not hang herself, was murdered

PUTRAJAYA: Investigation findings and testimonies of two witnesses showed that the TV9 administrative executive Nur Syaleza Jaffar was murdered and did not hang herself, the Appeals Court was told yesterday.
Deputy public prosecutor Nurshafini Mustafha said the High Court judge had erred when he failed to take into consideration the testimonies of forensic pathology expert from the Forensic Medicine Department of the Sungai Buloh Hospital, Dr Shahidan Md Noor, and ASP Mazli Jusoh who opined that the incident, in which the victim had allegedly hanged herself, did not occur.
She said Dr Shahidan, in his testimony, stated that it was difficult to say that Nur Syaleza had hanged as the strip marks on her neck were horizontal.
Nurshafini said the forensic pathology expert explained that if a person hanged himself, the physical marks would be vertical and not horizontal.
She said the pathologist had also argued that the deceased was strangled with a soft and wide object from behind as the horizontal strip marks were visible only at the front of the neck.
Nurshafini said the testimony of the pathologist also stated that if a person hanged himself, the body would appear paler depending on how long it was left hanging, and it was a rare occasion to find the deceased with a red face and blue fingertips and lips like in Nur Syaleza's case.
As such, she said the High Court had erred in its decision on May 28 last year to discharge Norazman Bashah Ahmad Azam Bashah, husband of Nur Syaleza, of the charge of murdering her.
She said the testimony of Mazli, who carried out the crime scene investigation, also stated that it was difficult for the woman to hang herself while using only one hand as her other hand was holding on to the cupboard, and at the same time, standing on a chair alleged to have placed on an unstable mattress.
Nurshafini said Mazli also testified that in order to make a knot on the bed sheet, the deceased would need to use both hands.
She also said the investigating officer had conducted a thorough investigation to prove that Norazman had murdered his wife by strangling her to death using the bed sheet.
She said the High Court judge had also failed to consider Norazman Bashah's defence on why he did not act quickly to break open the door if he had truly heard the sound of a falling object coming from the room.
Norazman Bashah, 34, a former information technology executive of an oil and gas company, was charged with murdering Nur Syaleza, 31, at their home in Saujana Apartment, Damansara Damai, Petaling Jaya, between noon and 7.30pm on Jul 28, 2012.
His lawyer, Muhammad Fadhli Mat Sutris, asked the Appeals Court to dismiss the appeal filed by the prosecution and to uphold the High Court decision in setting Norazman free.
He argued that depression had prompted Nur Syaleza to hang herself, and that she was suffering from depression after she found out that her husband was cheating on her.
He said the absence of dust on the bed sheet and on the fan was simply because the two items were dust-free.
He also argued that the stool found in the room could also be used in hanging one self, and that the failure of the police and the forensic team in investigating the matter had been detrimental to the prosecution's case.
The three-judge panel comprising Court of Appeal judge Datuk Tengku Maimon Tuan Mat, Datuk Seri Zakaria Sam and High Court judge Kamardin Hashim set Feb 19 to announce the decision on the prosecution's appeal. — Bernama