PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has sentenced an unemployed man to 35 years in prison for the murders of his younger brother and aunt in 2016.
A three-judge panel, comprising Judges Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali, Azman Abdullah, and Azmi Ariffin, also ordered Azman Wahab, 40, to receive 24 strokes of the cane.
The court imposed a 35-year jail term for each murder charge, with the sentences running concurrently. Azman was given 12 strokes of the cane for each charge.
Initially, the High Court had convicted Azman on Aug 25, 2022, of the lesser charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder under Section 304b of the Penal Code, sentencing him to 16 years in prison.
However, on Thursday (Nov 14), the Court of Appeal overturned this decision, allowing the prosecution’s appeal to convict Azman on the original murder charges.
Justice Ruzima, in delivering the court's decision, stated there was merit in the prosecution's appeal and set aside the High Court’s decision.
He noted a misdirection by the High Court in considering Azman’s defence, which was based on alleged unsoundness of mind. The prosecution had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Azman committed murder.
Azman was found guilty of killing his 26-year-old brother, Muhammad Azwan, in their house's living room in Kampung Lanai, Parit Panjang, Baling, Kedah, at 11am on Oct 2, 2016.
He was also convicted of murdering Rokiah Abdullah, 54, outside the same house at 11.10am on the same day.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Ng Siew Wee, representing the prosecution, argued that the murders were deliberate. The severe and multiple injuries suffered by both victims did not support the claim that a person unaware of the act's nature committed them.
She detailed how Azman struck his paralysed brother on the head with a rambutan tree branch, then attempted to hit him with an iron.
Azman proceeded to the kitchen, retrieved a coconut grater, and repeatedly struck his brother again.
Ng further argued that Azman threw a brick at Rokiah’s face, and upon her collapse, he picked up the brick and threw it again, rendering her unconscious.
Azman’s lawyer, Rafidi Mohamad, contended that Azman did not intend to kill, insisting that the High Court was correct in ruling that the attacks were spontaneous, without preparation or awareness that the weapons could cause death. – Bernama
