Court Hears How Cadet Cried Out When Iron Was Placed Against Him

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Naval cadet officer Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain. (Facebook pic)KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here heard yesterday how naval cadet officer Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain cried out when a hot iron was placed on his thigh
Muhammad Afif Najmudin Azahat, 23, the fourth accused in Zulfarhan’s murder trial, said Zulfarhan had exclaimed “Don’t!” when he placed the iron on him
When prompted by counsel M Ramachelvam, he also showed judge Azman Abdullah how he had held the iron against the Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia (UPNM) cadet officer
He said he had approached Zulfarhan at 4.30am on May 22, 2017 and found him perspiring without any sign of injury after the second accused, Muhammad Azamuddin Mad Sofi, placed an iron against him
“Later, when Zulfarhan was asked about a theft case, the situation became tense and chaotic, and someone handed over a steam iron to me
“I spontaneously placed it (the iron) on his thigh twice, but for no more than a second,” he said when examined by Ramachelvam
Asked about Zulfarhan’s reaction, he said: “Zulfarhan recoiled his leg and cried out loudly
“After using the steam iron, I put (the iron) on the table and did nothing else and then returned to my room 3-3, at the Jebat hostel block of UPNM before dawn,” he said
Afif said he learnt about the injuries sustained by Zulfarhan through his friends on May 26, 2017, during the semester break
He said he and the first accused, Muhammad Akmal Zuhairi Azmal; the sixth accused, Abdoul Hakeem Mohd Ali; and the 12th witness, Muhammad Sufi Mohd Mustapha took Zulfarhan to Klinik As-Salam in Bangi using the car of the 16th accused, Muhammad Hasif Ismail at noon on May 27, 2017
“After completing the treatment at the clinic, I asked Hasif to send me to the Southern Integrated Terminal as I wanted to return to my hometown in Negeri Sembilan,” he said
He said that as varsity mates, he and Zulfarhan had had a good relationship
“I had no intention of injuring Zulfarhan and causing his death. I did not know that using a steam iron would have caused Zulfarhan injury at that time,” he said
When cross-examined by deputy public prosecutor Julia Ibrahim on whether the iron had come into contact with the skin of Zulfarhan, who was wearing only boxer shorts at the time, Afif said “Yes.”“Zulfarhan did not run, he just sat on the floor,” he said when asked by Azman whether Zulfarhan had fled when the iron was placed on him
When asked if the iron had emitted steam, Afif said “Yes.”“I knew it was hot but I didn’t know the extent of the heat,” he added
When asked whether he recognised the logic that steam from an iron was akin to boiling water, Afif said: “To say steam was emitted, the lowest temperature would also result in the same, but I am not too sure about this.”On July 31, the High Court here ordered 18 UPNM students to enter their defence on charges of murdering, injuring and abetting in the murder of Zulfarhan
Five of the accused – Akmal, Azamuddin, Muhammad Najib Mohd Razi, Afif and Mohamad Shobirin Sabri – were charged with murder while Abdoul Hakeem Mohd Ali was charged with abetting
They allegedly committed the offence in room 04-10 of the Jebat hostel building at UPNM, between 4.45am and 5.45am on May 22, 2017
The charges were made under Sections 302 and 109 of the Penal Code, which carry the mandatory death sentence upon conviction
The six, along with 12 others, were also ordered to enter their defence on charges of injuring the victim
The 12 are Mohd Hafiz Fauzan Ismail, Mohamad Lukhmanul Hakim Mohd Zain, Ahmad Shafwan Berdal, Muhammad Amirul Asraff Mala, Luqman Hakim Shamsuri, Muhammad Sufi Mohd Mustapha, Noriznan Izzairi Noor Azhar, Muhamad Ashraf Abdullah, Muhammad Danial Firdaus Azmir, Muhammad Hasif Ismail, Muhammad Adib Iman Fuad Adi Sany and Mohamad Syazwan Musa
They were charged with voluntarily causing hurt to the victim for the purpose of forcing him to admit to the alleged theft of a laptop, according to Section 330 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34 of the same act which imposes a maximum imprisonment of seven years and a fine, upon conviction
The offence was allegedly committed at room 03-05 of the Jebat hostel building between 2.30am and 5.30am on May 21, 2017
The trial continues today. - FMT

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