KOTA TINGGI, Aug 12 — A 39-year-old housewife was charged in the Magistrate’s Court here today with murdering her 16-month-old step-granddaughter last month.

The accused, Nurul Farhana Laily Shah, indicated that she understood the charge after it was read before Magistrate Hafizah Abdul Rajak.

However, no plea was recorded from the accused, who is also the victim’s step-grandmother, as the case falls under the jurisdiction of the High Court.

According to the charge, Nurul Farhana is accused of murdering Nur Anggun Dahlia Abdullah between 12.30pm on July 30 and 9.30am on July 31 at a house along Jalan SS 6/13 in Taman Sri Saujana here.

The charge was framed under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which carries the death penalty or imprisonment of between 30 and 40 years upon conviction. If the death penalty is not imposed, the offender shall also be sentenced to not fewer than 12 strokes of the cane.

The prosecution was conducted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Nor Afiqah Musa, while the accused was represented by counsels Lydiana Mansor and Farah Yasmin.

Bail was not offered to the accused as an offence under Section 302 of the Penal Code is non-bailable.

The court set Dec 11 for mention and submission of the chemical, autopsy and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) reports.

Yesterday, Johor police chief Datuk Ab Rahaman Arsad confirmed that three individuals, including the victim’s step-grandmother, had been detained to assist in the murder investigation following an incident at their home in Taman Sri Saujana.

He was reported as saying that the victim’s step-grandmother had previously lodged a police report on July 31, claiming that her granddaughter had died while sleeping at the house.

However, an autopsy conducted at Pasir Gudang Hospital found that the baby’s cause of death was abdominal and chest trauma caused by blunt force, in addition to several wounds and bruises on her body.