The accused, S Pandiaraj, 33, was calm when judge Ahmad Nasfy Yasin handed down the verdict after finding that the prosecution had succeeded in raising a reasonable doubt in the defence’s case.

Nasfy said the court found that the death of S Ammos Devaprraven, 27, was inconsistent with injuries sustained in a road accident, as alleged by a witness.

He said that based on the examination of the testimony of prosecution witnesses and supported by forensic evidence, the accused’s actions had caused fatal injuries.

“After careful consideration, the court is satisfied that the accused failed to give reasonable evidence against the prosecution’s case.

“The court has no option except for the death penalty,” he said.

According to the charge, Pandiaraj and two others who are still at large had a common intention to murder Ammos in front of Chithras Mini Mart in Jalan Tun Ali here around 4.30am on Oct 21, 2016.

After Ammos was trampled for a minute, the victim was taken to Melaka Hospital by another witness, who made a false report claiming that the deceased had been a victim of a hit-and-run accident.

However, one of the witnesses contacted the deceased’s brother and told him the truth.

Pandiaraj was charged with murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34 of the same code, which provides for the mandatory death sentence upon conviction.

The prosecution was conducted by state prosecution director Ahmad Sazali Omar and deputy public prosecutor Nabilalif Rosli, while the accused was represented by Paul Krishnaraja.

A total of 16 prosecution witnesses were called throughout the proceedings, which began in 2018.