Woman’s lover jailed 22 years for killing toddler

 

Aizat Abdullah Othman’s jail term is to begin from April 1, 2016. (Freepik pic)

PUTRAJAYA: A 30-year-old man was sentenced to 22 years in prison for killing his lover’s 19-month-old toddler after the Federal Court reduced his murder conviction due to a lack of intention to commit the crime.

A three-member bench chaired by Court of Appeal president Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim said public interest was best served by imposing a deterrent sentence on Aizat Abdullah Othman for committing culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

Abang Iskandar, who sat with Justices Zabariah Yusof and Abu Bakar Jais, said there was no precedence on sentencing in the apex court for a person found guilty of committing culpable homicide not amounting to murder against a child.

The prosecution only submitted a case from the Court of Appeal where an accused was sentenced to 20 years’ jail for a similar offence against a child who was two years old.

Those found guilty of the offence under Section 304a could be sentenced to a maximum of 30 years in jail.

Aizat’s jail term is to begin from April 1, 2016.

He committed the offence on Hannah Sufiyah Adib at her mother’s rented apartment at Jalan Putra Perdana in Puchong, Selangor, about 1.40pm on March 31, 2016.

The Court of Appeal in June 2022 affirmed the death sentence imposed by the High Court in Shah Alam in 2019.

Trial judge Abdul Halim Aman had said he accepted the evidence of the victim’s five-year-old sister who witnessed Aizat abusing the victim on the fateful day.

Earlier today, defence counsel Hisyam Teh Poh Teik submitted that the trial judge had failed to comply with Section 182A of the Criminal Procedure Code as he did not consider the accused’s cautioned statement taken during the investigation.

The lawyer, who was assisted by Low Wei Loke, said the judge also did not give weight to the statement of a man who drove the deceased and Aizat to a nearby clinic.

“The man’s statement was relevant to show the degree of mens rea (intention to commit the offence) that he did not have the intention to commit murder,” said Hisyam in urging the bench to reduce the murder charge.

Deputy public prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz submitted that the murder conviction should be maintained due to the concurrent findings of the two courts.

“The trial judge’s finding is not fatal just because he did not refer to the accused’s cautioned statement. The judge had addressed all the issues,” said Afzainizam who was assisted by Dhiya Syazwan Izyan Mohd Akhir.

He said the accused had shifted the blame on the deceased’s mother for causing injuries on the toddler. However, he said the accused’s cautioned statement was not supported by evidence in court.

A post-mortem confirmed that the child’s death was due to blunt trauma, such as strong blows like punches and kicks.

Abang Iskandar noted, in delivering judgment today, that: “There is evidence that he (Aizat) also threw the victim to a wall.”

The facts of the case revealed that Aizat had moved in to live with the deceased’s mother, a civil servant who was separated from her husband, two months before the incident.

Aizat was taking care of the woman’s two children while she was at work. - FMT