PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal today dismissed the appeal of five former National Defence Universiti (UPNM) cadets against their conviction and three-year prison sentence for injuring navy cadet Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain seven years ago.
A panel of three judges led by Datuk Hadhariah Syed Ismail and sitting with Mohamed Zaini Mazlan and Datuk Azmi Ariffin made the decision after the five withdrew their respective appeals recently.
The five are – Muhammad Akmal Zuhairi Azmal, Muhammad Azamuddin Mad Sofi, Muhammad Najib Mohd Razi, Muhammad Afif Najmudin Azahat and Abdoul Hakeem Mohd Ali.
Counsel Amer Hamzah Arshad, who appeared for all the appellants, said their appeal had become academic and was no longer relevant as all of them had already been serving their prison sentences since 2021.
Deputy public prosecutor K. Mangai did not object to the withdrawal.
He said all of them were now focusing their appeal on the conviction and 18-year jail sentence under Section 304 of the Penal Code for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
On Nov 2, 2021, High Court judge Datuk Azman Abdullah sentenced the five, including Mohamad Shobirin Sabri, to 18 years jail after they were found guilty of causing the death of Zulfarhan without intent.
The judge sentenced them under a lesser charge after finding that the common intention and abetment of the sixth accused had caused injuries to Zulfarhan but there was no intention of murder.
Judge Azman also sentenced the six, except for Shobirin, along with 12 others, to three years jail after finding them guilty of voluntarily causing grievous hurt to Zulfarhan to coerce a confession from him that he had stolen a laptop.
The others guilty of causing grievous hurt to Zulfarhan were ordered to serve their jail term from the date of sentencing.
The 12 former students are Mohd Hafiz Fauzan Ismail, Mohamad Lukhmanul Hakim Mohd Zain, Ahmad Shafwan Berdal, Muhammad Amirul Ashraf Mala, Luqman Hakim Shamsuri Agus, Muhammad Sufi Mohd Mustapha, Noriznan Izzairi Noor Azhar, Muhamad Ashraf Abdullah, Muhammad Danial Firdaus Azmir, Muhammad Hasif Ismail, Muhammad Adib Iman Fuad Ady Sani and Mohamad Syazwan Musa.
The former students, then aged 21, had committed the offence at the Jebat Hostel Block, UPNM, between 2.30am and 5.30am on May 21, 2017, and in the same room between 1.30am and 4.30am on May 22, the same year.
Zulfarhan was found with burn marks and bruises in an apartment in Serdang at 8pm on June 1, 2017, and was pronounced dead at 10pm at the Serdang Hospital.
