Man in Sibu jailed 2 years for causing Indonesian’s death by negligence

SIBU (Feb 25): The Magistrates’ Court here sentenced an odd-job worker to two years’ imprisonment for causing the death of an Indonesian man by negligence.

Magistrate Oon Kork Chern imposed the sentence after Mohammad Shahniezan Sahriel, 28, from Daro pleaded guilty to a charge under Section 304A of the Penal Code.

The Section provides for imprisonment of up to two years or a fine, or both, upon conviction.

The accused caused the death of Yammar Alimuddin in a room of a budget hotel along Jalan Wong Nai Siong here at about 6.30am on Jan 15 this year.

According to the facts of the case, Mohammad Shahniezan and his two brothers were in the hotel room with the deceased taking drugs.

When they attempted to leave, the deceased blocked the door, produced a knife, and tried to stab them.

A scuffle ensued during which the deceased was restrained on the bed with his hands tied behind his back with a belt, before the police were contacted.

Police arrived at the hotel but did not go up to the room, and advised the brothers to drop the deceased at an oil palm plantation where he used to work.

Later, the belt subsequently used to restrain the deceased came off, and the deceased again became aggressive, attempting to stab the brothers with a pair of scissors.

Mohammad Shahniezan then struck the deceased on the head with a helmet.

The deceased continued to struggle and repeatedly banged his head against the wall, and rafia string was later used to restrain him.

The brothers, who sustained injuries, arranged for transport and initially intended to leave the deceased at the plantation as advised, but decided to take him to the police station instead.

Upon their arrival, a policeman found the foreigner still alive and advised the brothers to send him to the hospital, where a doctor later confirmed that he had died.

A post-mortem determined the cause of death to be blunt force trauma to the head.

Deputy public prosecutor Keshava Rao Tharma Raja appeared for the prosecution, while the accused was unrepresented.

In mitigation, Mohammad Shahniezan appealed to the court for leniency, citing his responsibility to care for his 60-year-old mother and a brother who is still studying in Johor Bahru.