Judge grants RM40,000 bail to driver in Dungun UiTM students' deaths, warns against assuming crash was deliberate
KUALA TERENGGANU, June 17 — The High Court today granted RM40,000 bail with two sureties to a woman charged with murdering three Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Dungun students in a road crash on Oct 9 last year.
In delivering his decision, Judge Datuk Hassan Abdul Ghani found the defence's argument that the collision was an unintentional road accident and that the accused, Norizan Ismail, 50, had also skidded into a drain, to be reasonable.
'Just like a plane crash, you wouldn't assume the pilot flew the plane intending to kill people. Perhaps the same can be said of Norizan,' he said.
The court also imposed the following bail conditions: the accused must report to the Dungun police station once every two months; she is prohibited from operating any vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, or bicycles; and her husband or bailor must ensure she has no access to any vehicle keys.
Additional conditions include that the accused may only leave her home when accompanied by her husband, must continue receiving hospital treatment, and is prohibited from contacting or interfering with any witnesses until the trial concludes.
If the accused breaches any of the conditions, the bail will be automatically revoked and the bail sum forfeited.
Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Mohd Khairuddin Idris proposed bail at RM30,000 with two sureties but urged the court to deny bail altogether, citing the potential risk of further offences.
In response to a query from the judge, defence counsel Mohd Shahir Mat Jusoh informed the court that Norizan had a scheduled hospital appointment in Kuala Lumpur and was also undergoing alternative treatment.
On Oct 15 last year, Norizan was charged with three counts of murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code in connection with the deaths of UiTM Dungun students Muhammad Akmal Md Tukirim, 25; Ku Adib Aizad Ku Azmi, 20; and Khairil Anuar Jamaluddin, 20.
Subsequently, the court ordered Norizan to be sent to Hospital Permai for psychiatric evaluation, which found her fit to stand trial.
Norizan is also facing a charge under Section 307(1) of the Penal Code at the Kuala Terengganu Sessions Court for attempted murder involving another UiTM student who sustained injuries in the same crash. — Bernama
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