Former Soldier Spared Death Penalty for Daughter's Murder

A former soldier has been spared the gallows for the murder of his nine-year-old daughter, as Malaysia's Federal Court commuted his death sentence. The Federal Court panel, led by Datuk Nordin Hassan, upheld the conviction under Section 302 of the Penal Code but was split on the appropriate punishment.

“

The court found no miscarriage of justice in the previous court's decision that convicted the appellant. Therefore, the conviction under Section 302 of the Penal Code is upheld.

While two judges agreed with the previous High Court ruling, Datuk Nordin Hassan, in the majority decision, stated that the sentence should be replaced with imprisonment. The court ultimately decided on a sentence of 40 years' imprisonment from the date of arrest (January 31, 2018) and 12 strokes of the cane. The former soldier was originally sentenced to death by the Seremban High Court in August 2023 for the murder of Nur Aina Nabihah.

The horrific crime occurred between 8:30 PM and 11:30 PM on January 31, 2018, at a house in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan. Court documents revealed that the accused had ordered his children, including the victim, to perform 500 squats and sit-ups for not praying. When Nur Aina became too weak to continue, the father stomped on her stomach with one foot. Enraged when she couldn't get up, he stomped on her again and then kicked her forcefully, causing fatal injuries.

“

I disagree with both these judges (Justice Vazeer Alam and Justice Mohd Nazlan) because, for me, this is a case where the death sentence should have been upheld. However, you are lucky because the majority of the panel in this case agreed to replace the death sentence with imprisonment.

During the appeal, the defense argued that the conviction was unsafe, citing the High Court's reliance on the testimony of the 18th prosecution witness (an older sibling of the victim) without a proper competency test. The defense also requested a second chance for the accused. However, the prosecution countered that the witness, who was 15 at the time, understood the questions asked during the trial and detailed the brutal punishment inflicted for perceived religious infractions. The prosecution stated that the victim's pancreas was split and her ribs broken due to the abuse.

“

In this case, the client brought his child (the victim) to the hospital for treatment. I also request that the client be given a second chance.