Justice Hassan Abdul Ghani ordered Suparman Aman’s sentence to run from the date of his arrest on March 15, 2022.

The 46-year-old pleaded guilty to accepting a ransom payment in cash from a company, which was also the 28-year-old victim’s employer, following the kidnapping, at 3am on Jan 24, 2017.

The charge was framed under Section 5(1) of the Kidnapping Act 1961 (Revised 1989), punishable with a prison sentence of not more than 10 years. It also carries a sentence of whipping, if convicted.

Deputy public prosecutor Khairuddin Idris asked for the maximum sentence to be imposed, saying the accused was fortunate to be offered an alternative charge and that the court must prioritise the public interest.

Lawyer Ghazali Ismail, representing Suparman, pleaded for leniency on the ground that his client’s guilty plea had saved the court both time and cost.

On July 2, 2020, three of Suparman’s accomplices – Zairol Nizan Md Nor, Khairul Anuar Musa and Abdul Hadi Abu Bakar, aged 40, 42, and 25 respectively – were sentenced to life imprisonment after being found guilty under Section 3 of the same law.

Zairol was also ordered to be given seven strokes of the cane, while Khairul and Hadi received five strokes each.