Nurul Huda raped and sodomised, court told

BY ZUHRIN AZAM AHMAD

JOHOR BARU: A 10-year-old girl who was found dead at a guardhouse in Gelang Patah near here early this year was raped and sodomised, the High Court heard. 

Forensic pathologist Dr Shahidan Mat Noor said he conducted the post-mortem on Nurul Huda Gani's body and found her vagina torn and the edge of her anus bruised. 

He said the injuries were caused by the penetration of a blunt object that he later defined as an erect penis.  

Dr Shahidan was the first prosecution witness in the trial of former security guard Mohd Abbas Danus Baksan, who is accused of murdering the young girl at the Tenaga Nasional Berhad guardhouse in Kampung Pekajang, Gelang Patah, on Jan 17 between 9.20am and 1pm.  

The 46-year-old man is charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code which carries the mandatory death sentence upon conviction. 

Dr Shahidan, from the Sultan Aminah Hospital here, however, said it was difficult to ascertain how many people raped and sodomised Nurul Huda but that based on the pattern of the injuries, only one person was involved. 

The case was heard before Judicial Commissioner K.P. Gengadharan Nair. 

Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Abdul Rasid Sudin is assisted by DPP Nordin Ismail for the prosecution while Seremban-based lawyer Hanif Hassan was appointed by the court to represent the accused. 

Mohamed Zaini Mazlan and Mohamad Harmy Yusof are holding a watching brief for the deceased's family while Lalitha Nagamuthu is holding a watching brief for Tenaga. 

Dr Shahidan told the court that Nurul Huda was silenced and disabled by her assailant so that he could be free to do whatever he wished to her. 

The pathologist said he found colourless fluid in her vagina and after examination, did not find any traces of sperm. 

This, he told the court, could happen as ejaculated fluid might contain very little or no sperm. 

Dr Shahidan also said the post-mortem, which took about one and a half hours, revealed that Nurul Huda died from asphyxiation caused by manual strangulation. 

He said the strangulation caused injuries to her neck and when asked by DPP Abdul Rasid how many persons were needed to inflict such injuries, the doctor said one person would be enough. 

Two policemen from the Gelang Patah police station, Kpl Embok Tang Parlimen and L/Kpl Abu Hassan Salimin, were also called to identify evidence, which included a blue bicycle used by Nurul Huda. 

Hanif will cross-examine Dr Shahidan today. 

Several of Nurul Huda's family members were seen outside the courtroom, including her brother Amer Affendi, who was among the first to discover her body, and sister Nor Aien Azlynah.