PUTRAJAYA: A senior citizen was acquitted and discharged by the Court of Appeal today, overturning his conviction and death sentence for the murder of his disabled stepsister-in-law six years ago.
The three-judge panel unanimously ruled that the circumstantial evidence presented during the trial was insufficient to uphold the conviction.
Muhammad Johari Ng Abdullah, 66, had been sentenced to death by the High Court in January last year for the killing of 26-year-old Nor Izzati Ghazali, who had dwarfism.
The incident allegedly occurred at an apartment in Klang, Selangor, on February 19, 2019.
Justice Datuk Hashim Hamzah, who delivered the court’s decision, stated, “Therefore, we find the conviction to be unsafe. As such, the conviction and sentence are set aside, and the appellant’s appeal is allowed.”
Following the ruling, Muhammad Johari expressed his gratitude to the judges.
His lawyer, Hafizuddin Salehuddin, argued that the trial judge failed to consider the possibility of another individual, the deceased’s stepsister, being involved in the crime.
“There is no irresistible conclusion that the appellant was the one who caused the death of the deceased,“ Hafizuddin said.
Deputy public prosecutor Faizal @ Amrin Noor Hadi, however, maintained that the trial judge’s findings were correct and urged the appellate court to uphold the conviction.
According to case details, a neighbour had reported that the deceased had previously complained of physical abuse by Muhammad Johari.
A post-mortem examination revealed 24 clusters of injuries on the victim’s body. – Bernama
