Latest news with #EvidenceAct1950
The Sun
2 days ago
- General
- The Sun
Nine-year-old boy allegedly sodomised by schoolmate
PETALING JAYA: A 12-year-old boy who allegedly sexually assaulted his nine-year-old schoolmate cannot be prosecuted under Malaysia's current legal framework, highlighting a significant gap in the country's child protection laws. Kelantan police chief Datuk Mohd Yusoff Mamat confirmed that while the 12-year-old suspect has been arrested and investigated for the alleged sodomy incident, he cannot face charges in court due to Section 113 of the Evidence Act 1950. The law stipulates that children below 13 years of age are considered incapable of committing rape based on an 'irrebuttable presumption,' effectively placing them beyond prosecution for such offenses. According to Buletin TV3, the alleged sexual assault occurred approximately two months ago between the two boys, who attend the same primary school in Kelantan. The victim subsequently informed his mother about the incident, prompting her to file a police report. 'The incident took place once and following that, the victim's mother came forward to lodge a police report,' Mohd Yusoff was quoted as saying. The police chief expressed concern about the legal limitation, calling for amendments to address what he sees as an increasing problem involving underage perpetrators. 'Therefore, I am of the view that this section should be amended to allow for the perpetrator to be charged, as there have been many cases involving suspects who are also underage children,' he said. The case underscores ongoing debates about how Malaysia's legal system should handle serious crimes committed by children, particularly as incidents involving juvenile offenders continue to emerge across the country.
The Sun
2 days ago
- General
- The Sun
12-year-old who allegedly sodomised schoolmate cannot be charged under current Malaysian law: Kelantan police chief
PETALING JAYA: A 12-year-old boy who allegedly sexually assaulted his nine-year-old schoolmate cannot be prosecuted under Malaysia's current legal framework, highlighting a significant gap in the country's child protection laws. Kelantan police chief Datuk Mohd Yusoff Mamat confirmed that while the 12-year-old suspect has been arrested and investigated for the alleged sodomy incident, he cannot face charges in court due to Section 113 of the Evidence Act 1950. The law stipulates that children below 13 years of age are considered incapable of committing rape based on an 'irrebuttable presumption,' effectively placing them beyond prosecution for such offenses. According to Buletin TV3, the alleged sexual assault occurred approximately two months ago between the two boys, who attend the same primary school in Kelantan. The victim subsequently informed his mother about the incident, prompting her to file a police report. 'The incident took place once and following that, the victim's mother came forward to lodge a police report,' Mohd Yusoff was quoted as saying. The police chief expressed concern about the legal limitation, calling for amendments to address what he sees as an increasing problem involving underage perpetrators. 'Therefore, I am of the view that this section should be amended to allow for the perpetrator to be charged, as there have been many cases involving suspects who are also underage children,' he said. The case underscores ongoing debates about how Malaysia's legal system should handle serious crimes committed by children, particularly as incidents involving juvenile offenders continue to emerge across the country.
Free Malaysia Today
23-04-2025
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Court rules ex-Goldman Sachs banker can testify in Najib's 1MDB trial
Ex-Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng was convicted by a New York court of corruption in 2013 and is said to be prohibited from being interviewed and testifying in Najib Razak's 1MDB case, according to his lawyer. PUTRAJAYA : The High Court here has ruled that former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng can testify in Najib Razak's 1MDB trial. Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah said the courts in Malaysia were not bound by the protective order issued on July 29, 2019 by New York's eastern district court which tried and convicted Ng for corruption. 'This court cannot wait for a variation to be made (to the protective order). 'This is a public interest case that has been dragged on for too long,' he added. Earlier today, the court was told that Ng's protective order barred him from being interviewed and giving evidence. Ng's lawyer, Tan Hock Chuan, said the protective order remained in force despite the fact that the case against Ng in New York concluded in 2023. He added that Ng's appeal is pending a decision. 'The American lawyers who handled his trial have advised us that he would be exposed to criminal liability if he were to testify here. 'Criminal sanctions can be taken and whatever he says here may be used against him for the appeal,' Tan said. The lawyer said his American counterpart intended to file a motion to vary the protective order to allow Ng to testify in Najib's defence. However Najib's lawyer Shafee Abdullah said the protective order did not cover documents and exhibits tendered in Ng's corruption case or matters that he might recall from his personal experience prior to the date of the order. Shafee added that under 132(2) of the Evidence Act 1950, no answer which a witness shall be compelled by the court to give shall subject him to any arrest or prosecution, except where the evidence given is false.
Free Malaysia Today
21-04-2025
- Free Malaysia Today
Ismanira was scheduled to give a confession, Zayn Rayyan trial told
Ismanira Abdul Manaf and Zaim Ikhwan Zahari are on trial for neglecting their autistic son, Zayn Rayyan Zaim Ikhwan, and if found guilty, face a maximum fine of RM50,000, imprisonment for up to 20 years, or both. (File pic) PETALING JAYA : The Zayn Rayyan Zaim Ikhwan child neglect trial heard today that the autistic boy's mother was to be produced before a judicial officer to record a confession some six months after he was found dead. Testifying in the sessions court here, investigating officer Hafizee Ismail said he told Ismanira Abdul Manaf she would be produced before a magistrate to have her confession recorded under Section 26(1) of the Evidence Act 1950. 'I informed her at about 10pm that the confession will be recorded at about 9am on June 12, 2024,' the 28th prosecution witness said in his witness statement but without further elaboration. Ismanira and her husband, Zaim Ikhwan Zahari, both 30, were arrested on May 31 and held in remand for the maximum 14-day period permitted under the law. Hafizee said at about 4pm on June 13, 2024 he received instructions to charge them for neglecting their six-year-old son in a manner likely to cause the boy physical harm. The offence is alleged to have occurred at PJU Damansara Damai between noon on Dec 5 — when the boy was said to have gone missing — and 9.55pm the following day, when his body was discovered in a stream near his home at Apartment Idaman, Damansara Damai. The charge, framed under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, is punishable with a maximum fine of RM50,000, imprisonment for up to 20 years, or both, upon conviction. The boy was believed to have been murdered after an autopsy revealed injuries to his neck and body. Today, Hafizee also told the court that he had escorted Ismanira from the police lockup at about 9am on June 10 to the family home at Apartment Idaman for a re-enactment of the circumstances that took place between the time the boy vanished and when his body was found. 'I instructed a police team from Bukit Aman to record the re-enactment which took about two hours,' he said. Hafizee said the recording was downloaded onto a pen drive and handed to him later. The police officer also said that on Dec 12, a week after the incident, he received a preliminary report from the chemistry department which confirmed a foreign object was found in the victim's throat. 'It turned out to be a pulai leaf. Based on my investigation, there was a pulai tree, about 10m from where the deceased's body was found,' he said. The prosecution also tendered about 50 exhibits through Hafizee, who initially investigated the case as murder. Lawyers Haresh Mahadevan, Ramzani Idris and Lavanesh Haresh are appearing for the couple, while deputy public prosecutors Raja Zaizul Faridah Raja Zaharudin and Aqharie Durranie Aziz are prosecuting. The hearing before judge Syahliza Warnoh was adjourned to tomorrow.
New Straits Times
21-04-2025
- New Straits Times
Zayn Rayyan's mum taken for reenactment at scene days before child neglect charge
PETALING JAYA: Ismanira Abdul Manaf, the mother of deceased autistic boy Zayn Rayyan Abdul Matin, was brought out of the lock-up in June last year for a reenactment of incidents surrounding her son's disappearance at Block R in Apartment Idaman, two days before she was brought to court to record her confession. Senior investigating officer Assistant Superintendent Mohd Hafizee Ismail said Ismanira, 30, left the lock-up about 9am on June 10 last year to reconstruct the events that began about 10am and concluded at 12.30pm. "I had ordered Bukit Aman's Technical Assistant Department to record the reconstruction process. "The recording was copied onto a pen drive (referring to a USB flash drive) and given to me. "About 10pm the next day (June 11, 2024), I had informed Ismanira that she would be brought to the court in Petaling Jaya the next day about 9am to record her confession before a magistrate. "About 9am on June 12, 2024, Ismanira was brought to the court for a guilty plea confession before a magistrate under Section 26(1) of the Evidence Act 1950. "About 4pm on June 13, 2024, I received orders to have Zaim Ikhwan Zahari (Zayn Rayyan's father) and Ismanira charged under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code," he said in his witness statement in the couple's child neglect trial before judge Dr Syahliza Warnoh. Hafizee, the 28th prosecution witness, was then attached to the Petaling Jaya district police headquarters Criminal Investigation Department (CID). He is now the intelligence and operations senior officer at the Klang Selatan district police headquarters CID since January this year. Hafizee said that at 5.30pm on June 9, 2024, Ismanira had led investigators to a house in Bandar Puncak Alam, where he had seized items linked to a Saujana Utama police report. Hafizee told the court that he had reviewed a close-circuit television camera (CCTV) recording from the apartment's Joint Management Body dated Dec 5, 2023, at 12.13pm. "The footage captured a child in a white shirt walking in waterway downwards to a tunnel. "At 12.25pm, the footage showed the child turning back, exiting from the tunnel towards the waterway. "At 11.30am on Dec 16, 2023, I went to the location of the waterway for a reconstruction based on the CCTV recording that captured an image believed to be the deceased going in and out of the waterway at the adjacent Apartment Indah. "The reconstruction was completed about 2pm," he said. The trial continues. Ismanira and Zaim claimed trial to a joint amended charge as persons having the care of Zayn Rayyan, 6, who had allegedly neglected him in a manner likely to cause him physical injury. They were accused of committing the offence from 12pm on Dec 5, 2023, until about 9.55pm on Dec 6, 2023, around the area of Block R, Apartment Idaman, Damansara Damai, up to a nearby stream. They are represented by lawyers Haresh Mahadevan and Ramzani Idris.
