A three-member panel, led by Justice Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera, imposed the prison sentence on Nazri Abdullah, 51, after dismissing his appeal against his conviction for the murder charge.

“However, the court allowed the appellant’s (Nazri’s) appeal against the death sentence. The death sentence is set aside and replaced with a 35-year prison term, commencing from the date the appellant was arrested on July 4, 2017.”

Vazeer sat with Justices Azmi Ariffin and SM Komathy.

Vazeer said Nazri had also been spared the cane as he was over 50 years old.

On Dec 15, 2021, Nazri was sentenced to death by the Seremban High Court after being found guilty of murdering his father, S Valaytham, 76, in a house in Felda Lui Timur, Bahau, between 10.30pm and 11.20pm on July 2, 2017.

Earlier, Nazri’s lawyer, Ahmad Ishrakh Saad argued that at the time of the incident, the appellant was drunk, a fact supported by the prosecution’s witnesses.

“In this case, the trial judge (in the High Court) accepted the fact that the appellant was intoxicated. The judge could not determine the extent of the intoxication,” he said.

Deputy public prosecutor Fuad Abdul Aziz, however, said there was testimony from prosecution witnesses that the appellant had driven his car for two hours from the victim’s house to his friend’s house (the third prosecution witness) in Sungai Pelek, Sepang.

“If the appellant was intoxicated, how could he have driven for two hours?” Fuad asked and requested that the death penalty be maintained.

The media had reported previously that the victim, who was also a land settler, was found dead by police officers who went to the victim’s house after receiving information from a neighbour about a disturbance at the house.

The incident occurred after Nazri, the third of six siblings, asked his father for money, but the victim ignored him.