PUTRAJAYA – The Federal Court today dismissed a review application by a former member of the police Special Action Unit (UTK) Azilah Hadri to set aside his conviction and death sentence for the murder of Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaarribuu.
A five-member bench led by Chief Judge of Malaya Tan Sri Azahar Mohamed said the court was of the view, on the face of the records, that there was no injustice in the case.
He said Azilah's own suppression of the so-called evidence (on the alleged instructions from a third party to carry out the murder), did not lead to an exceptional situation to warrant a review.
Apart from Azahar, the other judges who presided were Federal Court judges Datuk Seri Mohd Zawawi Salleh, Datuk Vernon Ong Lam Kiat, Puan Sri Zaleha Yusof and Datuk Zabariah Yusof.
Earlier, the same panel also dismissed former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's application to intervene in Azilah's review application.
Azahar, however, said Najib’s counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, was at liberty to appear before the court to hold a watching brief for his client in the review.
Azilah, 43, was seeking to set aside his conviction and death sentence imposed by the Federal Court on January 13, 2015, and an order for a retrial. – Bernama, December 8, 2020
