Slapping incident: 65-year-old pleads not guilty to fresh charge

A 65-YEAR-OLD man claimed trial at the Johor Bahru Magistrate's Court here for slapping a 21-year-old man for eating in public during Ramadan.

Abdul Razak Ismail, 65, pleaded not guilty after the charge was read out before magistrate A Shaarmini today.

He was charged under Section 323 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt to 21-year-old Elijah Ling Zhao Zhong.

Abdul Razak allegedly committed the offence at a mall in Tampoi at about 6.15pm on March 16.

The charge was framed under Section 323 of the Penal Code, which provides for up to two years’ imprisonment, a maximum fine of RM2,000, or both, upon conviction.

Deputy public prosecutors Nor Afiqah Musa and Nur Fatihah Nizam prosecuted while the accused was represented by Salleh Togimin.

Nor Afiqah requested bail to be set at RM8,000 but Mohd Salleh appealed for a lower amount, citing his client's status as a retiree with three children, including a university student.

He also said the accused had cooperated with authorities from the beginning, including voluntarily attending court.

Shaarmini granted bail at RM2,000 and set April 29 for mention.

Earlier today, Abdul Razak pleaded guilty at the same court, but his plea was rejected as he had not agreed to the facts of the case as read out by the court interpreter.

Shaarmini rejected the guilty plea and ordered the senior citizen to appoint a lawyer to defend himself.

However, in a turn of events, deputy public prosecutor, Nur Fatihah Mohd. Nizam said she had received instructions for the case to be referred to the Attorney-General's Chambers.

The magistrate then ordered the case to be DNAA and for the accused to be charged later.

In a statement later, the AGC said technical issues in the case filed at the Johor Baru Magistrate's Court had been resolved and the accused would be charged again. – March 19, 2025