1. ) RAJAN A/L PANNERSELVAM 2. ) GANESAN A/L GENGAN v Pendakwa Raya
Catchwords
Criminal appeals – against conviction and sentence under ss. 329 and 323 of the Penal Code Bare denial - the narrative brought by the Appellants was wholly unsupported by any credible evidence - indeed, this version raises more questions than answers, particularly as neither Appellant could provide even the name of the said “foreman” - no reasonable explanation, and indeed it defies logic, as to why the Appellants failed to reveal the individual's name, both during the trial and throughout the course of the police investigation - a mere denial without other proof to reasonably dislodge the prosecution’s evidence is not sufficient. Police investigation - SP1’s testimony concerning the locus delicti and his identification of the Appellants as the actual perpetrators was clear, cogent and consistent. SP1’s lengthy, close-range interaction with the unmasked Appellants enabled him to vividly recall their facial features - peripheral issues, such as, who escorted SP1 home, the mechanical verification of the two vehicles, the two-day delay in seeking medical attention and SP7's failure to seize SP1’s mobile phone, are mere administrative irregularities that do not vitiate the integrity of the overall police investigation or render it fatal to the prosecution's case. identification parade - in the present case, the identification parade served merely to corroborate the identity of the Appellants - even if the identification parade were to be completely disregarded, SP1’s dock identification and overall evidence concerning the identities of the Appellants remained untainted, consistent, and safe to rely upon - the facts that the Appellants were not wearing face masks, coupled with the close-range conversation and the prolonged duration of the interaction, constitute cogent evidence that SP1 was fully capable of vividly recalling the Appellants' features. First information report - a police report which stands a first information report is not an encyclopaedia expected to contain a meticulous narration of every detail - its primary function is to set the machinery of criminal investigation into motion - the critical determinant is whether the information provided within the report is sufficient to enable the police to embark upon an investigation, a threshold which has undeniably been met in the present case notwithstanding any omission of minor details.
Judges (1)
Judgment
Read the full judgment on the official Malaysia Courts portal.
Read on eJudgmentSource: eJudgment (bl-42s-1-01-2025)