Justice Duncan Sikodol ruled that the prosecution had proven a prima facie case against the teenagers, aged 16 to 19, Berita Harian reported.

The judge fixed March 10 to 14 for their defence to be heard.

In April 2024, the 13 teenage boys were jointly charged in the Lahad Datu magistrates’ court with the murder of Nazmie the month before.

They were accused of jointly murdering Nazmie in a dormitory room at the college between 9pm on March 21 and 7.35am on March 22.

The charge was framed under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which provides for the death penalty or imprisonment of up to 40 years and a maximum 12 strokes of the cane, upon conviction.

Deputy public prosecutors Raya Nur Nisla Abd Latif, Ng Juhn Tao, and Batrisyia Khusri prosecuted.

Eight of the accused were represented by lawyers Ram Singh, Kamarudin Chinki, and Chen Wen Jye. The rest were represented by lawyers Zairi Zainal Abidin, Abdul Ghani Zelika, Vivian Thien, Jhesseny P Kang, and Kusni Ambotuwo.