Court of Appeal imposes death penalty on ex-poultry trader who murdered woman after she rejected his marriage proposal in Ipoh.
PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal sentenced a former poultry trader to death today for murdering a single mother who had rejected his marriage proposal.
A three-judge bench comprising Justices Datuk Azmi Ariffin, Datuk Noorin Badaruddin and Datuk Meor Hashimi Abdul Hamid allowed the prosecution’s cross-appeal to impose capital punishment on Mohd Nur Hussein Mohd Salleh.
The court overturned the High Court’s earlier sentence of 38 years imprisonment and 20 strokes of the cane against Mohd Nur Hussein.
Justice Noorin Badaruddin stated the court found Mohd Nur Hussein had meticulously planned the murder of the woman who was killed simply because his love was unreciprocated.
She noted Mohd Nur Hussein committed a brutal act with injuries consistent with slaughter and evidence showing he attempted to set fire to the room containing the body.
The judge further revealed Mohd Nur Hussein had planned an alibi by logging in and out at a cyber cafe during the crime, though witnesses placed him near the victim’s house.
“The appellant entered the victim’s house early morning and stabbed her eight times, causing a severed vein in the neck,” she said.
Justice Noorin described this as a clear case of blatant disregard for human life with no remorse from the appellant.
She added that Mohd Nur Hussein had taken valuable items belonging to both the victim and her child and hidden them.
The court dismissed Mohd Nur Hussein’s appeal against his conviction, ruling circumstantial evidence sufficiently proved he committed the murder.
Mohd Nur Hussein, 42, was found guilty by the High Court on September 8, 2023, for murdering Hamidah Abdul Rahman, 53, at a house in Taman Datuk Liew Yan Sip, Ipoh.
The murder occurred between 3 am and 5 am on March 13, 2017, when the shop assistant was killed.
The victim had known Mohd Nur Hussein for several years as friends who often went out together.
Mohd Nur Hussein had proposed marriage to her, but she rejected it as she was 20 years his senior.
The woman became engaged to a retired policeman two months before the incident.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohd Amril Johari sought the death penalty, citing the crime’s gruesome nature and jealousy motive described as “if I can’t have her, no one else can.”
Defence lawyer Mohamad Hafiz Jalaludin argued no evidence from a prosecution witness proved the accused entered the victim’s house or met her. – Bernama
