Hisyam Teh to lead defence team for Siti Bainun's appeal case
NOOR AZLIDA ALIMIN08 May 2023 12:37pm
Siti Bainun (left), Hisyam Teh Poh Teik
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Lawyer Nur A'minahtul Mardiah Md Nor said this during a case management for a stay of conviction and jail sentence before High Court Judge Datuk Ahmad Bache.
"I and another lawyer, Mohammad Farhan Maaruf, will work with Hisyam in the appeal," she said.
Hisyam was the lawyer to former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in his final appeal on the misappropriation of SRC International Sdn Bhd funds.
He also defended Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who faced 47 charges, 12 of which involved criminal breach of trust, eight involved corruption, and 27 involved money laundering of tens of millions of ringgit from Yayasan Akalbudi funds.
Hisyam acted as the lawyer to clerk Sam Ke Ting who was released and acquitted on charges of reckless driving that resulted in the death of eight teenagers in Johor Bahru, in 2017.
Nur A'minahtul further said they have filed a certificate of urgency together with an affidavit, requesting the court to hear the appeal immediately due to Siti Bainun's health issues, including asthma and gallstone disease.
"We request the court to hear this appeal immediately because Siti Bainun suffers health issues and I will attach medical documents on the details," she said.
Meanwhile, lawyer Ahmad Faiz Munawar who also represented Siti Bainun said the defence team filed an affidavit for stay of execution, as decided by the Sessions Court.
"We request the court to set the hearing proceedings soon, next week at the latest," he said.
Additionally, the affidavit of support filed indicated that Siti Bainun not only suffers from health issues such as asthma and gallstone disease but also has to take care of her sickly mother.
On the other hand, the deputy public prosecutor Zilfinaz Abbas acknowledged that the prosecution had received the affidavit on Friday and requested 14 days to respond to it.
"Other than me, the prosecution is also handled by the deputy public prosecutors Nor Aziah Mohamad, Zahida Zakaria and Shakira Aliana Alias.
"However, they all have their own duties and we need time to discuss before responding to the affidavit," he said.
After hearing this, Ahmad Bache asked the prosecution to answer the affidavit within 10 days and fixed May 18 to hear the stay of execution appeal.
On May 3, the Sessions Court ruled Siti Bainun to be sentenced to 10 years in prison for neglecting Bella and 12 years for abusing Bella.
Judge Izralizam Sanusi had ordered the prison sentences to run concurrently starting last Wednesday.
The court also ordered the accused to sign a good behavior bond for five years period with one local surety and RM5,000 collateral.
She was also ordered to spend 200 hours doing community service, which must be completed within six months after the end of her prison sentence.
Meanwhile, Siti Bainun was seen waving her hand and making flying kiss gestures to her mother and family members present at the proceedings.
Her mother was seen wiping her tears away before leaving the court.
On last Wednesday, Judge Izralizam Sanusi had rejected Siti Bainun's appeal for stay of execution.
He made the ruling after finding the 31-year-old woman had failed to provide reasonable doubt to allow the court to grant a stay of execution.
According to the charges, she was sentenced to prison for neglecting and abusing a down syndrome teenager, causing the victim to suffer physical and emotional injuries.
The offence was committed in a condominium unit in Wangsa Maju between February and June, 2021, and she was charged according to Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001 which carries a maximum of 20 years prison sentence, RM50,000 fine or both if convicted.
