A three-member Court of Appeal bench, chaired by Justice Hanipah Farikullah, said the High Court judge erred in law and on the facts when she reduced Shahril Tamsir’s charge at the close of the prosecution’s case.

“We are satisfied that the prosecution has established a prima facie case for murder. The accused should enter his defence to that charge,” said Hanipah when allowing the prosecution’s appeal.

Hanipah, who sat with Justices Ahmad Nasfy Yasin and Lim Chong Fong, also directed that the case be called up for mention before the same trial judge on Feb 22.

“This case should be given priority as the trial had started in 2018,” she said.

Shahril, 50, was charged with the murder of Ahmad Radzi Jamaludin at a business centre in Felda Cempedak in Labis, Johor, at about 7.30am on Aug 31, 2017.

The trial judge sentenced him to 18 years jail after he pleaded guilty to culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

Earlier today, deputy public prosecutor Nahra Dollah told the court the trial judge was wrong to rule that the accused did not have the mens rea (intention to commit the offence) after he raised the defence of insanity.

“At no time did a medical doctor testify that the accused was of unsound mind,” said Nahra, who was assisted by DPP Dhiya Shawani Akhir.

Nahra said a trial judge could only draw the conclusion that an accused was insane at the close of the defence’s case.

She said the mistake by the trial judge must be rectified and the accused should be asked to enter his defence on the original charge.

Lawyer Muhammad Abdul Kadir submitted that the judge reduced the charge as the prosecution failed to show that Shahril had the required mens rea for murder, one of four elements of the offence.

“We only conceded that there was a victim, there was an injury and that it was caused by the accused,” said Muhammad, who was assisted by Khairulnadiah Hasni Yusoff.