PUTRAJAYA: A 42-year-old man has lost his final appeal against a 35-year prison sentence and 12 strokes of the cane for the 2012 murder of an Indonesian domestic cleaner. The Federal Court upheld the earlier rulings, dismissing claims of insanity.
Khairul Azizi Abdul Jalil had been convicted of killing Aidah Tursinawati, 43, in Ipoh, Perak, in 2017. He accused her of speaking ill of him before the attack. The Ipoh High Court initially sentenced him to death, but the Court of Appeal later commuted the penalty to imprisonment and caning.
A three-judge Federal Court panel, led by Justice Tan Sri Nallini Pathmanathan, ruled that psychiatric evidence was lawfully admitted during the trial. The court found no miscarriage of justice, noting that the accused had ample opportunity to present his defence.
Khairul Azizi had claimed insanity, citing schizophrenia, but conflicting medical reports weakened his case. A 2018 evaluation suggested he was of unsound mind, but a later assessment by Dr Ian Lloyd Anthony concluded he was mentally fit during the crime.
Defence lawyer Mohd Fitri Asmuni argued that psychiatric evidence should not have been introduced early in the trial. Prosecutors, however, maintained that the accused’s mental state was directly relevant to the case.
The Federal Court ultimately sided with the prosecution, affirming the conviction and sentence. - Bernama
