SATYAMOORTHY A/L SUNDRAMOORTHY

SATYAMOORTHY A/L SUNDRAMOORTHY

The Court of Appeal held that the prosecution failed to close a material gap by not calling or offering the key witness (Thanabalan) and that the trial judge had relied on post-arrest admissions that were not shown to be given after a caution; on the evidence as a whole there was insufficient basis to sustain a trafficking conviction under s.39B(1)(a) so the conviction was substituted to possession under s.39A(2) DDA and the sentence reduced to 10 years imprisonment and 10 strokes of rotan from date of arrest.

Citation
B-05(SH)-368-07/2024 (Mahkamah Rayuan)
Parties
Appellant: Satyamoorthy a/l Sundramoorthy; Respondent: Public Prosecutor
Court
SH
Jurisdiction
Malaysia
Judgment Date
9 October 2025
Case Number
B-05(SH)-368-07/2024 (Mahkamah Rayuan)
Procedural Posture
Criminal Appeal / Judgment on Appeal
Outcome
Appeal allowed in part: conviction for trafficking under s.39B(1)(a) DDA quashed and substituted with conviction for possession under s.39A(2) DDA; sentence reduced to 10 years imprisonment and 10 strokes of rotan from date of arrest
Legal Topics
Possession Vs Trafficking, Statutory Presumptions Under S.37(d) and S.37(da) DDA, Adverse Inference Under S.114 Evidence Act 1950, Admissibility of Confessions and Caution (s.113 Evidence Act), Wilful Blindness
Source Language
Malay/English
Criminal Law Narcotics / Dangerous Drugs Law Evidence Law Procedural Law Possession Vs Trafficking Statutory Presumptions Under S.37(d) and S.37(da) DDA Adverse Inference Under S.114 Evidence Act 1950 Admissibility of Confessions and Caution (s.113 Evidence Act) +1 more

Case Brief

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Parties

Satyamoorthy a/l Sundramoorthy

Appellant

Public Prosecutor

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Criminal Appeal / Judgment on Appeal

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the trial judge erred in relying on post-arrest admissions/confessions without proof of caution
  2. 2 Whether prosecution's failure to call or offer key witness (Thanabalan) justified adverse inference under s.114 Evidence Act 1950
  3. 3 Whether appellant rebutted statutory presumption of trafficking under s.37(da) DDA on the balance of probabilities

Ratio Decidendi

The Court of Appeal held that the prosecution failed to close a material gap by not calling or offering the key witness (Thanabalan) and that the trial judge had relied on post-arrest admissions that were not shown to be given after a caution; on the evidence as a whole there was insufficient basis to sustain a trafficking conviction under s.39B(1)(a) so the conviction was substituted to possession under s.39A(2) DDA and the sentence reduced to 10 years imprisonment and 10 strokes of rotan from date of arrest.

Court Disposition

Appeal allowed in part: conviction for trafficking under s.39B(1)(a) DDA quashed and substituted with conviction for possession under s.39A(2) DDA; sentence reduced to 10 years imprisonment and 10 strokes of rotan from date of arrest

Orders

  • Conviction under section 39B(1)(a) Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 set aside and substituted with conviction under section 39A(2) Dangerous Drugs Act 1952
  • Sentence modified to ten (10) years imprisonment from date of arrest (30 November 2020) and ten (10) strokes of the rotan