Indonesian sentenced to 30 years, 12 strokes for countryman’s murder in Tg Manis

SIBU (July 18): The High Court here today sentenced an Indonesian man to 30 years in jail and 12 strokes of the cane for the 2022 murder of his countryman in Tanjung Manis.

Judge Wong Siong Tung meted out the sentence on Muh Sakkar Arakee under Section 302 of the Penal Code after considering the submissions from the deputy public prosecutor and defence counsel.

The jail sentence is to commence from the date of arrest on Oct 15, 2022.

Muh Sakkar was charged with causing the death of Hapil Jamal at a workers’ quarters at the Ship Building Industrial Zone in Bandar Baru Tanjung Manis, Sarikei between 10.30pm and 11pm on Oct 14, 2022.

Judge Wong said upon evaluating the evidence presented by the prosecution’s witnesses during the trial and at the close of the prosecution’s case, he found the prosecution had succeeded in establishing a prima facie case against the accused.

He also ruled that claims by the accused, who chose to testify under oath without calling other witnesses, that he had acted in self-defence and due to provocation by the deceased, was inconsistent and contradictory with the statement he made under Section 112 of the Criminal Procedure Code which was presented during the trial.

“Having considered the totality of evidence by the testimonies of all witnesses called by the prosecution, as well as the testimony of the accused in this trial, the court finds no reasonable doubt regarding the guilt of the accused for the offence he is charged with,” said the judge.

Based on the facts of the case, Muh Sakkar had joined his friends for some beer at a friend’s unit at the quarters at around 8pm on Oct 14 after finishing work.

At the time, he had with him a ‘badik’ (Bugis dagger) in the jacket he wore.

During the gathering, he got up to go to the toilet and placed his jacket inside a room at the unit.

Upon emerging from the toilet and rejoining his friends, he felt that Hapil, who was seated about seven metres away, glaring at him and took it as a sign of the latter’s dissatisfaction and intention to challenge him.

Muh Sakkar then went back to the room to retrieve his jacket and rejoined his friends. As he sat there, he saw Hapil approaching him and got up to confront him.

During their confrontation, the accused was punched near his left eye and responded by using the ‘badik’ to stab Hapil, who collapsed on the floor.

He then fled into a nearby jungle and hid there until police arrested him the next day.

In his ruling, Judge Wong said he did not find credible Muh Sakkar’s assertion that, upon confronting the deceased, he had smiled and placed his hand gently on the deceased’s shoulder with the intention of calming him down.

The judge also said it defied belief that the accused had good intentions in advancing towards the deceased while carrying a ‘badik’ in his jacket.

“If the accused genuinely intended to make peace with the deceased, it is highly improbable that he would not remain seated and stay where he was when he saw the deceased approaching. Instead, he stood up and advanced towards the deceased with a ‘badik’ in his jacket.

“By the conduct of the accused, it seems that he was seeking a confrontation or looking for a fight with the deceased, creating an opportunity to use the ‘badik’ he carried instead of avoiding one as he portrayed in his testimony to the court.”

Deputy Public Prosecutor Mark Kenneth Netto prosecuted, while Muh Sakkar was represented by lawyer Ranbir Singh.