PENDAKWA RAYA Pendakwa Raya TERTUDUH NIRMAHL A/L SUBRAMANNIAN
Catchwords
Criminal Trial - s. 39B(1)(a) Dangerous Drugs Act 1952- police received information of drug trafficking activities at a shophouse Bavani Store (Bavani shop) - police observing for 45 minutes infront of Bavani Shop and saw the accused putting a paper bag into a Proton Wira JEK 2223 (Car)- The police arrested the accused at the 2nd floor of Bavani Shop - Key and remote control of the Car found in the left pocket of the accused's trousers - Accused led the police to the Car and pointed to a "Schaefer Precal" paper bag which was the same paper bag that the accused put into the Car earlier on - Drugs found inside the paper bag Discrepancy between the oral testimony of SP4 and his police report P18A - SP4 did not state that he had seen the accused putting the paper bag into the Car - oral testimony of the witness in court as substantive evidence - police report is only an instrument that triggers the process of investigation - discrepancies not substantial - police report merely served as collaborative evidence Failure to cross examine of SP4 on his observation of the accused placing the paper into the car amounts to an acceptance of SP4's evidence The series of questions and answers posed by SP4 to the accused would amount to information leading to recovery and not discovery - such information is inadmissible The conduct of the accused is relevant under s8 and s9 of the Evidence act that he had custody and control over the Drugs - since SP4 saw the accused putting the paper bag into the back passenger seat of the car and car key found with the accused, it can be inferred that the accused had knowledge of the Drugs Prima Facie case - Direct possession of the drugs - presumption under s.37(da) Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 applied Defence - Kamotenu passed the Car keys to the accused to return the Car to the accused's father - Less than 5 minutes after Kamotenu left, the policemen came and arrested the accused End of defence case - Accused has failed to rebut the presumption of trafficking under s.37 (da) Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 on balance of probabilities and has failed to cast any reasonable doubt on the Prosecution’s case - Accused was found guilty and convicted as charged
Practice Areas
Criminal Trial Discrepancy between the oral testimony of SP4 and his police report P18A Failure to cross examine of SP4 on his observation of the accused placing the paper into the car amounts to an acceptance of SP4's evidence The series of questions and answers posed by SP4 to the accused would amount to information leading to recovery and not discovery The conduct of the accused is relevant under s8 and s9 of the Evidence act that he had custody and control over the Drugs Prima Facie case Defence End of defence case
Judges (1)
Case Significance
PENDAKWA RAYA Pendakwa Raya TERTUDUH NIRMAHL A/L SUBRAMANNIAN is a High Court (Mahkamah Tinggi) decision dated April 23, 2025 (citation: ja-45a-80-12-2021). The case was decided by Kan Weng Hin.
Key issues: Failure to cross examine of SP4 on his observation of the accused placing the paper into the car amounts to an acceptance of SP4's evidence.
What was the outcome of PENDAKWA RAYA Pendakwa Raya TERTUDUH NIRMAHL A/L SUBRAMANNIAN?
PENDAKWA RAYA Pendakwa Raya TERTUDUH NIRMAHL A/L SUBRAMANNIAN is a High Court decision dated April 23, 2025. The case was heard by Kan Weng Hin. See the full judgment for details.