Lahad Datu: Two accused in the murder trial of Kolej Vokasional Lahad Datu student Mohamad Nazmie Aizzat Mohd Narul Azwan, also known as Ijat, claimed at the High Court today that they were coerced into making confessions about assaulting the victim.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the fifth accused, testifying before Judge Datuk Duncan Sikodol, said a disciplinary teacher at the college, identified as ‘Cikgu Firdaus,’ handed him an A4 sheet of paper and instructed him to write his confession. During cross-examination, the accused, who is also the first defence witness, agreed with a question posed by defence counsel Datuk Kamarudin Mohmad Chinki that the teacher had forcibly obtained his written confession.
Kamarudin questioned the fifth accused about the circumstances under which the statement was made, to which the accused agreed that the confession was coerced and not of his own free will. Meanwhile, the seventh accused, who testified as the second defence witness, told the court that he was forced by a police officer recording his statement at the police station to confess to assaulting the victim. When questioned by defence counsel Datuk Ram Singh on why he made the confession despite not having assaulted the victim, the seventh accused said he was intimidated by the investigating officer.
Ram Singh inquired further about the nature of the intimidation, and the seventh accused revealed that the police officers threatened to punch him to obtain a confession. All the accused are charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which carries the death penalty or imprisonment of 30 to 40 years, along with a maximum of 12 strokes of the cane upon conviction.
Deputy public prosecutors Nur Nisla Abdul Latif, Ng Juhn Tao, and Batrisyia Mohd Khusri appeared for the prosecution. Eight of the 13 juveniles accused are represented by counsels Ram Singh, Datuk Kamarudin Mohmad Chinki, and Chen Wen Jye, while the remaining five are represented by Mohamed Zairi Zainal Abidin, Abdul Ghani Zelika, Vivian Thien, Jhesseny P. Kang, and Kusni Ambotuwo.
On February 28, Judge Datuk Duncan Sikodol ordered the 13 teenagers, aged 16 to 19, to enter their defence against charges of jointly murdering Mohamad Nazmie Aizzat at Kolej Vokasional Lahad Datu between 9.00 pm on March 21 and 7.38 am on March 22 last year. The trial resumes tomorrow.