SIBU: A stall burger seller was on Monday (March 30) ordered by the High Court here to enter his defence on a murder charge.
The order was made by Justice Wong Siong Tung after he ruled that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against William Tinggi, 27, of Kapit.
“Pursuant to Section 180 of the Criminal Procedure Code and having heard the evidence presented at the close of the prosecution’s case, which the court has subjected to maximum evaluation and having heard submissions of both the prosecution and the accused’s counsel, the court finds that a prima facie case has been made out by the prosecution against the accused in respect of the charge brought against him.
“Accordingly, the court calls upon the accused to enter his defence to the charge.”
When given three options for the defence stage, William decided to give sworn evidence.
He was indicted on a felony charge of committing murder by causing the death of Angela Joseph, 25, at a cafe in Sibujaya town centre on Feb 23, 2024 at about 3pm.
The offence, framed under Section 302 of the Penal Code provides for a death penalty or life imprisonment and if not sentenced to death, be given not less than 12 strokes of the cane upon conviction.
Earlier in his submission, deputy public prosecutor (DPP) Mark Kenneth Netto, who appeared for the prosecution, said that on the afternoon of Feb 23, 2024, at approximately 2.30pm, the accused and two other individuals travelled in a Kembara compact SUV before dropping him off near the cafe.
The accused, armed with a kitchen knife and wearing a surgical facemask and a cap, disembarked from the vehicle.
He entered the cafe and stabbed the victim, who was working alone at the time, multiple times before robbing the premises of money.
The victim was rushed to the Sibujaya Health Clinic for treatment before being referred to Sibu Hospital where she succumbed to her injuries later that same day.
A post-mortem conducted on her revealed that her death was due to “multiple sharp force injuries to the body.”
As part of the investigation, the accused was caught in the act on CCTV at the cafe.
Acting on information received, the accused was subsequently arrested at his residence in Sibujaya.
DPP Mark also submitted that the case involved multiple strands of evidence — eyewitness, forensic, documentary and circumstantial — all pointing to the accused.
He argued that the incident was not a single impulsive act but involved the accused arming himself, targeting the victim and repeatedly stabbing her in vital organs.
“The law at this stage requires only that the prosecution’s evidence, if unrebutted, would warrant a conviction. On the facts before this honourable court, that threshold has been decisively met.
“Accordingly, I respectfully submit that a prima facie case has been made out, and the accused ought to be called to enter his defence under Section 180 of the Criminal Procedure Code.”
The defence case has been fixed for two days beginning June 23.
