Latest news with #ArmayaMatjani
Borneo Post
6 days ago
- Borneo Post
Woman jailed for concealing birth of baby boy at homestay
The Kota Kinabalu Court Complex. KOTA KINABALU (July 23): A 22-year-old woman was sentenced to six months in jail and fined RM2,000, in default two months' imprisonment, by a Magistrate's Court here for deliberately concealing the birth of a baby boy two years ago. Armaya Matjani pleaded guilty before magistrate Dzul Elmy Yunus to a charge under Section 318 of the Penal Code. The section provides that anyone who secretly buries or otherwise disposes of the dead body of a child in order to conceal its birth may be punished with up to two years' imprisonment, a fine, or both upon conviction. According to the facts of the case, Armaya had wrapped the newborn in a blue plastic bag shortly after giving birth and hid the body behind a toilet tank at a homestay between November 1 and 2, 2023. On November 6, 2023, a complainant reported a foul smell emanating from behind the toilet tank, where blood stains, a blue plastic bag and an umbilical cord were discovered. Investigations revealed that Armaya had checked into the homestay using someone else's name via an online booking platform. She was seen to be pregnant at the time of check-in but appeared no longer pregnant upon checkout. She had checked in alone. A police report was subsequently lodged, and a forensic team found the body of a baby boy wrapped in the blue plastic bag. The infant was confirmed dead. Armaya, who was unrepresented in court, stated she was unmarried and did not know the whereabouts of the baby's father.
The Star
22-07-2025
- The Star
Woman jailed six months for concealing and dumping newborn's body
KOTA KINABALU: A woman was jailed six months and fined RM2,000 after pleading guilty to intentionally discarding a newborn baby at a homestay here in 2023. Armaya Matjani, 22, pleaded guilty before Magistrate Dzul Elmy Yunus to the charge under Section 318 of the Penal Code for concealing the birth and secretly disposing of the baby's body. The court ordered her to serve another two months in jail if she failed to pay the fine. Section 318 provides for a maximum prison sentence of two years or a fine or both if convicted. Based on the charge sheet submitted to the court, the unmarried woman from Kampung Rampayan Manggatal was accused of dumping the baby's body at a homestay room on Jalan Kepayan between Nov 1 and 2, 2023. A worker discovered the body of the baby boy with the umbilical cord still attached in the room's toilet. Police investigations found that Armaya had booked the room online and checked into the homestay alone on Nov 1, before leaving the next day in a weak condition. A post mortem of the newborn's body by the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Forensic Unit confirmed that the baby died shortly after birth.
