Published: Wednesday November 4, 2009 MYT 11:27:00 AM
Updated: Thursday November 5, 2009 MYT 7:42:24 PM

Acid attack: Civil servant charged with murder (Update 2)

By K. KASTURI DEWI

kasturidewi@thestar.com.my

GEORGE TOWN: A Penang Municipal Council licensing officer was charged in two different courts with the murder of his wife and causing grievous hurt to his 17-year-old daughter by allegedly splashing acid on her face and body.

Tan Teik Swee, 53, who was dressed in a faded dark grey collared t-shirt and a pair of denim shorts, was charged in a Magistrates Court here at about 9.30am on Wednesday with murdering his wife Chong Swee Lin, 50, by splashing acid at her in a house at Jalan Batu Lanchang at 3am on Oct 24.

He was alleged to have committed the offence under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which carries the mandatory death sentence upon conviction.

There was a slight confusion in the court on Wednesday morning as Tan’s counsel R. Dev Chander was not present when the case was called up.

Dev Chander came into the court just after Tan was led away to the lock-up. The lawyer complained to Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Mukhriz Mat Rus about the case being mentioned without Tan being represented.

The case was called up again at about 10am and Dev Chander apologised to magistrate Noor Aini Yusof for his absence earlier, adding that he was not informed by the investigating officer that Tan would be charged on Wednesday.

“There was no co-operation from the investigating officer from the beginning. I had met him before but I was not even allowed to see my client,” he alleged.

Dev Chander also made an application under Section 342 of the Criminal Procedure Code to have his client sent for psychiatric observation as he was informed by family members that Tan had some psychiatric problems even before the alleged incident.

DPP Mukhriz then said there was no provision for a defence counsel to make the application and that there must be some elements of abnormal behaviour shown by the accused for either the prosecution or the court to have the accused sent for psychiatric observation.

Dev Chander said it was abnormal behaviour for a father to splash acid on his daughter and to kill his wife, and that a psychiatric report played a vital role in ascertaining his mental state of mind at the time of the offence.

DPP Mukhriz replied that the magistrate did not have the jurisdiction to order an accused to be sent for observation as a murder charge was under the purview of the High Court.

Noor Aini rejected the application for Tan to be sent for psychiatric observation as there was no documentary evidence to show that Tan was undergoing treatment for his psychiatric problems at the time of the offence.

The court then fixed the case to be mentioned on Dec 11 pending the post-mortem report.

Tan was also charged in a Sessions Court with causing grievous hurt by splashing acid on his daughter Tan Hui Lin’s face and body at the same place and day.

He claimed trial to committing the offence punishable under Section 326 of the Penal Code which carries a maximum 20 years’ jail and a fine or whipping.

Sessions judge Roslan Hamid fixed the case to be mentioned on Dec 4 pending the medical report.