Sibu High Court upholds man's seven-year jail sentence for drug charges

The Star

a day ago

SIBU: The High Court has dismissed an appeal by a man convicted of consuming dangerous drugs, upholding the seven-year prison sentence and three strokes of the cane handed down by the Kapit Sessions Court last year.
Mohamad Fadzlan Shaini, had pleaded guilty before the Sessions Court on Nov 14, 2024, to consuming dangerous drugs, an offence under Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, punishable under Section 39C(2) of the same Act.
In his appeal on Friday (Aug 15), he raised three main grounds - that the Sessions Court had failed to ensure he understood the nature and consequences of his guilty plea, that he was unfit to plead due to schizophrenia and antipsychotic medication, and that his plea was allegedly induced by a police officer.
Delivering the broad grounds of the decision, the High Court found that the Kapit Sessions Court had complied with Section 173 of the Criminal Procedure Code, with the charge, its nature, and legal consequences explained in Bahasa Malaysia. The appellant had confirmed his understanding and maintained his guilty plea.
On the claim of mental unfitness, Judge Wong Siong Tung noted that medical reports relied on in the appeal had not been tendered at the trial and were not conclusive regarding his fitness to plead. He stressed that mental illness does not automatically render an accused unfit to plead and found nothing in his demeanour to suggest he could not understand the proceedings.
Regarding the allegation of inducement, the court held there was no evidence connecting any police officer's advice to the appellant's decision to plead guilty. An affidavit from the appellant's father did not show direct communication between the officer and the appellant, and the appellant himself had not sworn any affidavit on the matter.
The court concluded that the appeal grounds were inconsistent and lacked credibility, dismissing the appeal and affirming both the conviction and sentence.
The prosecution was led by DPP Mark Kenneth Netto while Harold Emparak represented the accused.