6 Sentenced to Death, Then Reversed - Case of Malaysian Bullying Incident at a Glance

🔸Case: In May 2017, Naval student Zul Hazman at the National Defence University of Malaysia was accused of stealing a laptop by his classmates and was subsequently bullied by multiple individuals in the dormitory. 🔸Assault: The 6 defendants took turns using a steam iron to burn his entire body, including private parts, and also tied him up and beat him for approximately one hour. 🔸Injuries: Suffered about 90 burns across his body, with 80% of his body affected by burns and bruises. He died on June 1, 2017, due to an enlarged heart and kidney failure, at the young age of 21. 🔸Defendants: 6 classmates, all aged 21 at the time of the incident. 🔸First Trial: In November 2021, the Kuala Lumpur High Court sentenced each of the 6 individuals to 18 years in prison for culpable homicide. 🔸Second Trial: On July 23, 2024, the Court of Appeal found them guilty of murder and sentenced them to death by hanging. The victim's parents knelt and wept outside the courtroom. 🔸Final Verdict: On February 28, 2025, the Federal Court overturned the death sentence, reinstated the culpable homicide conviction, and upheld the 18-year prison sentence, to be calculated from the date of arrest in 2017. 🔸Family: The mother stated she is prepared to forgive the 6 individuals; the father said, "The wounds have healed, but the scars remain," and that they need time to accept the verdict. 🔸Conclusion: The case is real, but the "all to the gallows" sentence was only from the second trial and was not ultimately carried out. I saw this case online and thought the foreign judges were really tough. But after looking into it, What? The death penalty was overturned and reverted to the original 18 years.... It's still a bit better than Taiwan, but there's that feeling of... 'Huh? Another twist?' that leaves you unsatisfied 😑