Taufeeq Mohsein Ahmad Tahir, 38, a father of five, was also ordered to be given 12 strokes of the rotan.

Justice Hadharah Syed Ismail, who led a three-member bench, said there was overwhelming evidence from two of the couple’s underage children who witnessed the crime.

“The trial judge made a finding of fact that the two children were credible witnesses. The conviction is safe,” said Hadhariah, who sat with Justices Azman Abdullah and Azmi Arifin.

However, the bench replaced the death sentence imposed on Tawfeeq with the jail term and caning. The bench also ordered the jail term to begin from July 7, 2019.

Since last July, judges have been given the discretion to impose either the death penalty or an imprisonment term of up to 40 years for those found guilty of murder.

Men below 50 are also subject to a mandatory minimum of 12 lashings.

Taufeeq murdered Siti Noorasny Md Zain, 33, at their low-cost flat in Bandar Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur between 8pm on July 6, 2019 and 2.35am the following day.

Court-appointed counsel M Manoharan submitted that the evidence of the children should be rejected as procedures governing evidence were not strictly followed.

He said Siti, who worked in a restaurant, was a drug dependent.

Manoharan, who was assisted by Johan Ariff and M Hariharan, also urged the court to order a retrial.

In the alternative, the lawyer said the murder charge should be reduced to culpable homicide not amounting to murder as the prosecution had failed to prove intention.

However, deputy public prosecutor Eyu Ghimm Siang submitted a forensic pathologist testified that Siti died due to blunt trauma and had 51 injuries on her body.

“The couple’s two children gave evidence that they had witnessed, through an opening in a room, their father assaulting their mother with a bamboo stick and kicking her repeatedly,” he said.