Death row inmate maintains innocence in video plea from jail

B Anand Nambiar is on death row, purportedly at the Pengkalan Chepa prison in Kelantan. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA: A video plea by a death row inmate who was convicted of murder 17 years ago is making the rounds on social media.

In the clip believed to have been recorded on Monday, a man identifying himself B Anand Nambiar pleaded with the public to help him escape the death penalty, saying he is innocent of the charge.

“This is my only chance to say this. I swear by Allah, these hands never murdered anyone.

“If I am hanged over something I never did, I will never be satisfied. I hope my case will be reviewed,” said the man in the clip, one of two he recorded from what appears to be a prison cell.

Now 36, Anand, who said he was only 19 when the incident occurred, said he is currently an inmate at the Pengkalan Chepa prison in Kelantan.

When contacted, a source in the Prisons Department confirmed that Anand was a prisoner on death row.

Checks by FMT also found that Anand was charged alongside three others under Section 302 of the Penal Code for the murder of Heng Pang Kiat on Feb 21, 2002, in Kluang, Johor.

The four were sentenced to death by hanging. They were also separately sentenced to 20 years’ jail for attempting to murder Heng’s friend, Chong Chiew Nam.

The Federal Court upheld the decision in 2015.

According to court documents obtained by FMT, Chong, a business partner at a legal firm, was allegedly sought by a lawyer to fix a case at the appeals court.

The lawyer, who was involved in a suit brought by a consultant firm, was said to have sought a favourable outcome in the appellate court through the selection of a quorum in his favour.

The lawyer allegedly paid Chong RM500,000 to fix the case, but Chong and his friend Heng gambled the money away.

Chong and Heng were then abducted by the four men and kept in an apartment in Pasir Gudang, Johor, before being murdered.

Heng died on the spot, but Chong survived, according to testimonies in court.

The court also heard testimonies from shopkeepers who sold the men the weapons used in the murder.

While it was not established exactly who killed Heng, the court relied on Section 34 of the Penal Code where all persons involved in the crime had a common intention and were charged with murder. - FMT