BATU PAHAT: A Magistrate's Court here on Monday (May 6) scheduled May 20 for the next mention of the case involving a man accused of murdering his friend, Mila Sharmilah Samsusah, also known as Bella, for the purpose of transferring it to the High Court.
Magistrate Suhaila Shafi'uddin set the date after Deputy Public Prosecutor Farah Wahidah Mohd Sharip informed the court that the prosecution is awaiting further instructions from the Johor State Prosecution Office due to new developments from the police.
During the proceedings, lawyer Syahril Anuar Harun, representing the accused Mohammad Haikal Mahfuz, 25, requested for a date approximately two weeks earlier due to two previous postponements in March and April.
On Jan 24, Mohammad Haikal was charged with the murder of Mila Sharmilah, 32, between 11pm on Dec 14 and 5.30am on Dec 15, 2023, at various locations including Jalan Kelapa Bali, Taman Soga, Jalan Parit Besar, Kampung Parit Besar, and at an abandoned house in Lorong Imam Jailani, Jalan Besar, Tongkang Pechah here.
He was charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which carries the death penalty or imprisonment of between 30 and 40 years, and if the death sentence is not imposed, a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane, upon conviction.
Earlier, media outlets reported that Bella, a single mother of two, could not be reached after allegedly leaving her residence in her boyfriend’s car to head to a laundromat at 11.50pm on Dec 14 last year.
On Jan 19, one of the primary suspects in Bella's disappearance led police to partial human remains in an abandoned residence on Lorong Imam Jailani. - Bernama
