A three-member bench chaired by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat ordered the jail term of Asni Omar to begin from July 21, 2011, the date of his arrest.
The 49-year-old was also ordered to be whipped 12 times.
Also on the panel hearing the application were Justices Nordin Hassan and Hanipah Farikullah.
Asni sought a review of his death sentence under the Revision of the Sentence of Death and Imprisonment for Natural Life (Temporary Jurisdiction of the Federal Court) Act 2023, by which judges can maintain the death sentence or substitute it with a jail term of up to 40 years.
Asni was convicted by the Kuantan High Court of killing Stephanie Foray, 30, at a house in Kampung Tekek between 8pm on May 10 and noon on May 12, 2011.
Foray’s remains were found three months later, buried in a cave on Pulau Tioman.
Asni lost his appeal at the Court of Appeal. On Aug 16, 2016, a five-member Federal Court bench affirmed his conviction and sentence.
The facts of the case revealed that Foray, a former civil servant, was exploring Asia and had travelled to India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia.
She arrived in Melaka in May 2011. After a couple of days, she went to Pulau Tioman, off the east coast, where she met her death.
Her disappearance only came to light two months later, when a police report was made that she was missing.
The case was initially classified as a kidnapping. A week later, her body was found in a cave on the island. A local trader was charged with murder.
Asni had rented his house to Foray.
Investigating officer Wan Fauzi Wan Ishak told the court that a tip-off had led him to Asni who had essentially confessed to him, though not explicitly, and led the authorities to Foray’s remains and the discovery of the murder weapon.
He also led police to the recovery of some of her belongings buried in a hole near the house. Inside the house, police found a bag containing her personal items in a cupboard.
He also showed the cops her French SIM card, kept in his kitchen, and led them to a landfill where a liquor bottle was found. It was believed to have been used to kill Foray.
Pathologist Dr Sri Marni Zainal Abidin told the trial court the post-mortem on Foray’s body showed that her waist and feet had been bound with a green hose, while a piece of cloth was tied around her neck.
Sri Marni also found cracks on the skull at the right eyebrow, right cheekbone and right jaw, and concluded that the cause of death was probably blunt force trauma to the head.
No drugs or alcohol was found in Foray’s body. However, the pathologist said she could not rule out rape, as semen was found in her vagina.
Earlier today, deputy public prosecutor Iskandar Ahmad urged the bench to maintain the death penalty to serve as a deterrent to would-be offenders.
“It will create fear among potential tourists to Malaysia if the death sentence is not affirmed,” he said.
In the alternative, he proposed a minimum 36-year jail term.
Lawyer Kee Wei Lon however submitted that this was not the “rarest of rare” cases for the court to uphold the death sentence.
Kee, who was assisted by Ee Gen You, proposed a jail term of between 33 and 35 years.