Court fixes Feb 12 to hear trio's appeal in Kayong murder case

MIRI: The High Court yesterday fixed Feb 12 to hear the development of an appeal case over the release of the second, third and fourth accused in the murder of social activist, Bill Kayong on June 21, 2016.

The second, third and fourth accused are Lie Chang Loon, 39, Chin Wei Chung, 52, and businessman Datuk Stephen Lee Chee Kiang, 47 respectively.

Senior Assistant Registrar Md Syafique Md Hilmie however maintained March 19 and 20, 2018 as tentative date for the first accused, Mohamad Fitri Pauzi, 31, to enter his defence.

Earlier, Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohd Fuad Abdul Aziz informed Syafique that the appeal case involving the release of the three accused would be heard on Feb 5, at the Court of Appeal in Kuching.

Fitri, from Dawai 1 Road, Pujut 4D, was first charged on July 17, 2016, together with Lee, Chin and Lie.

The trio were charged with abetting Fitri, an offence punishable under Section 109 read together with Section 302 of the Penal Code, which carry the mandatory death sentence upon conviction.

Fitri is charged with murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which also provides for a mandatory death sentence. He has pleaded not guilty to killing Bill Kayong, also known as Mohd Hasbie Abdullah, who was then Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Miri branch secretary

He was shot dead inside his 4WD vehicle at a traffic light intersection near E-mart supermarket, Kuala Baram Bypass in Tudan, at 8.20am on June 21, 2016

On June 6, 2017 Judge Ravinthan N. Paramaguru found that the prosecution had succeeded in filing a prima facie case against Fitri, thus instructing him to defend himself.

On the same date, Ravinthan discharged and acquitted the trio after the trial failed to link them to Bill’s murder.

The court yesterday ordered Fitri to be detained further at Miri Central Prison pending trial.