On October 9, 3 students from UiTM Dungun tragically lost their lives, and another was injured when their motorcycles were struck by a car driven by a woman near the university on Jalan Pantai Sura.
The said lady driver, who’s believed to be mentally ill and hasn’t been treated at any state health facilities so far, has been arrested and is now in custody.
The suspect was charged with murder
In the latest update to the case, Bernama reported that the 49-year-old suspect has been officially charged with murder in the magistrate’s court today.
The charges, brought under Section 302 of the Penal Code, were presented to Norizan Ismail by Magistrate Nur Amira Fatihah Osman.
The charges state that the mother of three is accused of murdering Muhammad Akmal Md Tukirin, 25, Ku Adib Aizad Ku Azmi, 20, and Khairil Anwar Jamaludin, 20.
“I accept that I’m being charged”
Norizan could get the death penalty or be imprisoned for at least 30 years and up to 40 years if she’s found guilty. If she doesn’t get the death penalty, she might face at least 12 lashes.
When the suspect was brought into the courtroom earlier, she seemed shy and refused to stand in the dock when the interpreter asked for her name and ID number. But she did confirm the information when it was shown on a screen in court.
After the first charge was read, the interpreter asked her if she understood the charges, to which she replied,
“I accept that I’m being charged.”
“I understand, but I don’t know who I killed”
State Prosecution Director Azizah Abdullah, representing the prosecution, stood up and told the court that the accused’s actions reflected her mental state. She then asked the interpreter to read out the remaining 2 charges.
Norizan nodded after the second charge was read but shook her head at the third charge, only to nod again when it was read out a second time.
When Magistrate Nur Amirah Fatihah asked her what she understood from what the interpreter had read, she replied,
“I was charged with hitting people. I understand what was read, but I don’t know who I killed.”
No bail was offered to the suspect
Azizan didn’t grant the suspect bail because she showed signs of insanity, which even caused issues during the investigation when her statement was being recorded.
He asked for her to be sent for a psychiatric evaluation under Section 342 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
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