They each pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to them before judge Duncan Sikodol, who set the trial dates for Nov 18 to 20 and 25 to 29, Berita Harian reported.

The defendants, aged between 16 and 19, are accused of jointly murdering Nazmie Aizzat Narul Azwan in a dormitory room at the college some time between 9pm on March 21 to 7.35am on March 22.

They are charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code and face the possibility of the death penalty, if convicted.

The prosecution, led by deputy public prosecutors Suhaimi Suryana and Hurman Hussain, is expected to call 10 to 12 witnesses during the trial.

Nine of the 13 teenagers were represented by lawyers Kamarudin Mohmad Chinki, Ram Singh, Amirul Amin Rashid and Chen Wen Jye; one by lawyer Abdul Ghani Zelika; while the three others were not represented.