JOHOR BARU: A former cook escaped the hangman’s noose when the High Court here freed him of the murder of a 24-year-old man.
Calvin Phua Kim Hau, 27, walked out of the court a free man after Justice Datuk Abu Bakar Katar handed out the sentence on Thursday (Dec 19).
In his judgement, Abu Bakar said the prosecution had failed to prove that the victim John Liew Yuan’s death was caused by injuries inflicted by the accused.
“The court also ruled that two witness statements had not confirmed that the accused had stabbed the victim.
“His mere presence at the scene without other actions was not enough to link the accused with the murder that took place at the guard house of an apartment unit,” he said.
The court ordered Phua to be freed after finding that the prosecution had failed to prove a prima facie case against him.
The prosecution was represented by Deputy Public Prosecutor Muhammad Syafiq Mohd Ghazali while Phua was represented by lawyer Mohd Daud Ismail.
Phua was previously accused of murdering the victim at around 2.30am on June 3, 2018 at the guard house of an apartment unit in Jalan Masai Jaya, Plentong here.
The offence was framed under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder, which carries a death sentence upon conviction.
When met outside the court after the judgement, Mohd Daud said a total of 13 witnesses were called for the trial.
Phua, who wore a black face mask, was also seen shaking hands with his lawyer.
