Officer ordered to enter defence
THE STAR
Making his case: Mohammad Affandi arriving at the magistrate’s court in Bukit Mertajam, Penang.
BUKIT MERTAJAM: A veterinary officer, who allegedly bashed up his wife in a hospital lift, was ordered by a magistrate’s court here to enter his defence on a charge of voluntarily causing harm.
Magistrate Mohd Fitri Sadarudin ordered Mohammad Affandi Ismail to enter his defence at the close of the prosecution’s case.
He held that the prosecution had succeeded in proving a prima facie case against the accused.
Mohammad Affandi, 38, from Jerantut, Pahang, allegedly committed the offence at the KPJ Hospital in Bandar Perda here at about 4pm on Aug 12, 2013.He was charged under Section 323 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum one-year jail term or maximum RM2,000 fine or both.
Mohd Fitri fixed defence to be heard on Feb 18 and 19. Mohammad Affandi’s counsel R. Palaniappan submitted that the doctor had been unable to confirm the actual cause of the swelling on Siti Khadijah Ahmad Ramli’s forehead.
“The doctor was unable to confirm if the injury was caused by slapping or punching or by a self-inflicted injury,” he said.
Palaniappan also said there were contradictions in the victim’s testimony in court and her police statement.
“In her police report, she said she was slapped on her cheek and punched on the face but in court, she testified that she was slapped on the cheek and punched on the head.
There was a contradiction that was not explained.
“The CCTV footage did not show that she was punched and only showed that she was slapped. I had asked her about it during cross-examination, but she just kept quiet,” he said.
DPP Kamaliza Md Zain said the victim’s testimony in court was clearly supported by the CCTV footage.
“It is impossible that it was a self-inflicted injury and there was no way that the accused’s actions will not cause any injury on the victim,” she said.
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