Man sentenced to death for Bangladeshi national's murder

Free Malaysia Today

3 days ago

The trial which began in the Ipoh High Court on Jan 6, 2020, featured testimony from 24 prosecution witnesses, while the accused was the sole witness for the defence. (File pic)
PETALING JAYA : A farm worker was sentenced to death by the Ipoh High Court today after he was found guilty of murdering a Bangladeshi national, whose body was found floating in a river with one leg bound to a motorcycle.
Justice Su Tiang Joo pronounced the sentence on Amier Amzah Aspar, 28, at the end of the defence case, saying the punishment was justified given the cruel nature of the crime, Berita Harian reported.
Amier, then aged 21, was charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code with the murder of MD Ovaidul, 32, at Sungai Kinta near Sungai Galah in Kampung Gajah, Perak, sometime after 8.20pm on Dec 15, 2018.
The victim's decomposing body was subsequently found in the river, with the motorcycle believed to have been used to weigh it down.
The trial which began on Jan 6, 2020 saw 24 witnesses testify for the prosecution. Amier was the sole defence witness.
Su said the cruel nature of the crime was evident in how the victim was clubbed on his head and slashed in his neck, before his body was dragged and disposed of in the river.
'The death was not sudden or quick. I accept the prosecution's argument that the death sentence is appropriate,' he said when delivering his judgment.
Su said he also took into consideration an impact statement in which the victim's brother, Hossain Khan, said that the victim had been working for Amier's father for four years at the time of his death.
Hossain said Ovaidul was planning to return to Bangladesh to get married, and that his family was reliant on the income the victim earned from his employment in Malaysia.
The prosecution was led by deputy public prosecutor Geetha Jora Singh, while the accused was represented by lawyer V Santhiran.