TAWAU: The High Court here has sentenced the ex-wife of an e-hailing driver to 20 years' jail on an alternative charge of causing his death.
Nurima Juli entered a guilty plea on Monday (April 14) while her stepbrother Sadam Kiram, 30, was acquitted and discharged of the same alternative charge under Section 304(a) of the Penal Code.
Justice Datuk Dr Lim Hock Leng ordered that Nurima, 35, begin serving her sentence from the date of her re-indictment, April 26 last year.
"Having considered the submissions of learned counsel for accused (Nurima) and the learned DPPs, and bearing in mind the paramount objective of public interest, the facts of the case and sentencing precedents, the court finds it appropriate to order the accused to serve a term of imprisonment of 20 years.
ALSO READ: Ex-wife, stepbrother claim trial to murdering ehailing driver
"In passing sentence, the court is mindful that the accused (Nurima) had pleaded guilty before the start of this trial," he said.
According to the alternative charge, Nurima and Sadam were accused of causing the death of 61-year-old Nurman Bakaratu at an oil palm plantation near Jalan Anjur Juara, Jalan Apas Batu 5, between 7.30pm and 11.30pm on Jan 13, 2023.
They were charged under Section 304(a) of the Penal Code for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, which carries a penalty of up to 30 years' imprisonment and a fine upon conviction.
Initially, both Nurima and Sadam had been charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code with jointly committing murder.
However, on Monday, the court allowed the prosecution’s application to withdraw the original charge.
ALSO READ: Tawau murder: Ex-wife of ehailing driver, stepbrother charged
Nurima was previously the key witness in a separate murder trial involving the death of Nurman, which implicated former Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) chief intelligence officer Datuk Mat Zaki Md Zain and seven others, in the High Court here.
However, Mat Zaki and the seven co-accused were acquitted and discharged after the prosecution decided not to proceed with the case following Nurima’s testimony, in which she admitted stabbing Nurman inside a car.
The prosecution was led by DPPs Mustaffa P. Kunyalam and Mohammad Fakhrurrazi Ahmad Salim. Nurima and Sadam were represented by counsel Mark Rosaidey Mohd Amin and Jhassary P. Kang respectively. – Bernama
