Malaysian prison officers acquitted of assaulting inmate

A Johor Bahru Magistrate's Court has acquitted two prison wardens and a prison officer of charges related to the intentional infliction of injury upon an inmate four years ago. The decision was made by Magistrate A. Shaarmini following the commencement of the trial.

The acquittal was granted after the victim decided not to proceed with the prosecution and subsequently withdrew the police report he had filed. The three accused individuals, Mohamad Ridzuanuddin Nawawi, 33; Mohamad Tarmizi Mohd. Yusoff, 34; and Ahmad Kamal Fitri Abdullah, 32, had initially faced the charges on March 16.

All three pleaded not guilty to the charges, and the trial proceedings began on August 20. The charges stemmed from an incident where Mohamad Ridzuanuddin, a prison warden, was accused of intentionally causing injury to A.K. Navindrahkumar, 30, at the Johor Bahru Correctional Centre. In a separate charge, Mohamad Tarmizi, a prison officer, and Ahmad Kamal Fitri, a warden, were jointly accused of committing a similar offense against the same victim at the same location.

The accused were charged under Section 323 of the Penal Code, which carries a penalty of up to one year in prison, a fine of up to RM2,000, or both, upon conviction. The prosecution was handled by Deputy Public Prosecutor Eizlan Azhar, while the defense was represented by lawyers Kamal Hisham Jaafar and Nurainaa Kamilah Zalizan.