TUAN MUHAMMAD SHAHRUL AZLAN BIN TUAN ABDUL RAHMAN v Pendakwa Raya

Case Significance

Illustrates that a valid and voluntary guilty plea cannot be withdrawn on appeal, the appeal being confined by section 305 of the Criminal Procedure Code to the sentence; and that seven years' imprisonment and two strokes for a weapon-assisted attempted robbery under section 394 of the Penal Code against a woman before children is not manifestly excessive.

This High Court decision, in its appellate jurisdiction, concerns an appeal against sentence following a plea of guilty to an offence of attempted robbery causing hurt with the use of a sharp weapon under section 394 of the Kanun Keseksaan (Penal Code). The appellant is a natural person referred to here by role; the prosecuting authority is the "Pendakwa Raya" (the Public Prosecutor). Because the appellant had pleaded guilty, his appeal was confined to the severity of the sentence, and he sought at the appellate stage to withdraw his plea.

The court first addressed the attempt to retract the guilty plea. Under section 305 of the Kanun Tatacara Jenayah (Criminal Procedure Code), an accused who has pleaded guilty may appeal only as to the extent or legality of the sentence. Finding that the plea had been valid and voluntary ("pengakuan sah dan sukarela"), the court held there was no basis to revisit it at the appeal stage, so the appeal properly went only to the sentence.

On sentence, the court weighed the aggravating features of the offence: it was a violent offence, committed with a sharp weapon; the victim was a woman ("mangsa wanita"); and the incident occurred in front of children ("kejadian di hadapan kanak-kanak"). Against the sentencing principles of public interest and deterrence, and having regard to sentencing trends for offences of this kind, the court considered the sentence imposed — seven years' imprisonment and two strokes of the cane — and held that it was "tidak nyata berlebihan" (not manifestly excessive). It accordingly dismissed the appeal.

The judgment is a useful illustration of two points: a valid and voluntary guilty plea cannot be withdrawn on appeal, where the appeal is confined by section 305 of the Criminal Procedure Code to the sentence; and a sentence of seven years' imprisonment and two strokes for a violent, weapon-assisted attempted robbery against a woman in the presence of children reflects the weight given to public interest and deterrence and will not be disturbed as manifestly excessive.