THE murder trial of a 15-year-old boy accused of killing his schoolmate is now heading towards its final submissions, with the High Court set to hear arguments from both sides next month.
The defence completed its case today after its final witness, Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta director and consultant forensic psychiatrist Dr Ian Lloyd Anthony, finished giving evidence.
Defence lawyer Kitson Foong said written submissions have been fixed for Sept 3, followed by oral submissions on Sept 8 before High Court judge Datuk Adlin Abdul Majid.
The court is expected to deliver its decision in mid-September.
A key issue before the court will be the teenager’s mental state and whether he meets the legal test for insanity under Section 84 of the Penal Code.
Foong said the court would weigh Dr Ian Lloyd’s evidence alongside testimony and medical evidence concerning psychosis and the circumstances surrounding the incident.
“Whether he committed the offence and whether he is legally insane under Section 84 of the Penal Code will ultimately be decided by the court,” he said.
The closed-door trial began on Aug 3 and has lasted 10 days, with 11 prosecution witnesses and two defence witnesses called to testify.
The prosecution’s witnesses included a pathologist, the victim’s mother, a former schoolmaster, four teachers and three child witnesses, including the accused’s 17-year-old brother.
The child witnesses testified from behind a partition to avoid direct contact with the accused, who was seated near the dock. Their identities and evidence are protected under the Child Act.
The defence began presenting its case on Aug 8, with the teenager himself taking the stand before Dr Ian Lloyd was called as the final defence witness.
Foong said the court would also consider the teenager’s conduct following the incident, including evidence that he did not flee.
He urged the public not to draw conclusions about the case without considering the evidence surrounding the teenager’s mental state.
On his client’s current condition, Foong said the teenager remained calm, was responding well to medication and continued to receive treatment at the Puncak Alam Correctional Centre.
“He is doing better. As long as he takes his medication, there is every hope that he will get better.
“His condition is lifelong, and there is no cure, but it can be managed with medication,” he said.
The court was previously told that symptoms of mental illness began emerging in the teenager after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Foong said the teenager had remained calm throughout the proceedings and understood what was taking place in court. An interpreter was provided to translate the proceedings into Mandarin.
Foong also described the proceedings as unusually swift for a murder trial involving a child, saying the case had been prioritised because of the accused’s age and the involvement of child witnesses.
“Most cases would not even start within one year of the offence. Here, we have finished within one year.
“This should serve as a benchmark for future cases,” he said.
The teenager pleaded not guilty to the murder charge in February.
He is accused of murdering his Form Four schoolmate in the girls’ toilet at SMK Bandar Utama Damansara (4), Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya, between 9.20 am and 9.35 am on Oct 14 last year.
The charge carries the death penalty or imprisonment of between 30 and 40 years, with whipping, upon conviction.
However, Section 97(1) of the Child Act prevents the death penalty from being imposed on a person who was below 18 when the offence was committed.
Under Section 97(2), a child convicted of an offence punishable by death may instead be detained at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong if the offence was committed in the Federal Territories, or the relevant Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri if committed in a state.
The teenager is represented by Foong, Chew Jee San, Angel Choo and Yan Zhi Wei.
The prosecution is represented by deputy public prosecutors Raja Zaizul Faridah Raja Zaharudin, Aqharie Durranie Aziz and Ahmad Iqbal Azman.
Datuk Yasmeen Shariff and Jason Lim Jie Sheng are holding watching briefs for the Bar Council and Human Rights Commission of Malaysia respectively. – August 26, 2026
