Judge K Muniandy fixed the date after Avitan’s lawyer Aiman Haziq informed the court that the interpreter provided during previous proceedings could not speak Hebrew.
“We believe this application will not prejudice the prosecution’s case. We also want it to be on record that our application is not malicious and is not an attempt to delay the trial.”
“Our application is based on a specific ruling by the sessions court judge on Jan 7, who had ruled that the trial would proceed regardless of an interpreter and in English if there is no Hebrew interpreter,” he said, adding that the defence had filed the application on Jan 9.
Aiman contended that not having a Hebrew interpreter in the trial is a serious concern, as it violates Articles 5 and 8 of the Federal Constitution and Section 270 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
“In fact, we have sent a letter to the Palace of Justice (Putrajaya) to inform that Dr Chew Kai Mun is a qualified Hebrew interpreter who can assist in the trial and we have made an inquiry,” he said.
However, deputy public prosecutor (DPP) V Suloshani Vijendran objected to the application, saying that the sessions court had already postponed the trial.
“We were informed that an interpreter was available, but they were never brought into open court. Nothing was read, and the interpreter never spoke to the accused.
“Therefore, I am unclear as to why the counsel is claiming that the interpreter was unqualified,” she said, adding that the court had given enough time to secure the correct interpreter.
She also said that if the trial proceeds without a Hebrew interpreter, the defence can file a new application.
DPP Rullizah Abdul Majid, on the other hand, said that the matter was now moot as the original trial dates had been vacated, with case management scheduled for Feb 14.
On Jan 13, the court adjourned the trial and set Feb 14 for case management. The initial dates set for the hearing were also vacated from Jan 6 to 9, Jan 13 to 16, and Jan 20 to 23.
In April last year, Avitan was slapped with a charge under Section 7(1) of the Firearms (Increased Penalties) Act 1971 for trafficking in six guns, and another under Section 8 of the Arms Act 1960 for possessing 200 bullets.
The offences allegedly took place in a hotel room in Jalan Ampang, between 6.46pm on March 26 and 6pm on March 28.