SIBU, May 4 — The Sessions Court here yesterday sentenced a 33-year-old woman from Kapit to eight years’ imprisonment for causing the death of a man in February this year.
Judge Marutin Pagan meted out the sentence on Sandra Siman after she pleaded guilty to an amended charge of committing culpable homicide not amounting to murder, framed under Section 304(a) of the Penal Code.
The charge provides a maximum 30 years’ jail and also liable to a fine, upon conviction.
The jail sentence is to run from the date of arrest on February 15, 2021.
Sandra was accused of causing bodily injury that likely caused the death of Albert Brau, 46, at Rumah Temuai, Jalan Selirik in Kapit at 12.10pm on February 15, 2021.
Police investigation revealed that on the day of the incident, the accused and another female tenant of a lodging house, Saun Tunggong, were cutting vegetables in the kitchen when Albert entered in an intoxicated state.
Albert then became embroiled in a quarrel with Saun after she chided him for slamming the refrigerator door when taking out some drinking water.
Saun, who was the key witness in the trial, testified that before leaving the kitchen, Albert had pushed Sandra’s head which caused her to fall forward.
The knife Sandra was using to cut vegetables also slipped out of her hand and fell in front of her.
Upon seeing this, Albert challenged the accused to stab him with the knife if she wanted to fight him.
Still on the floor, Sandra picked up the knife and swung it behind her back where Albert was standing, stabbing the left side of his abdomen.
She then got up and asked Albert why he had picked on her, before pulling out the knife from his abdomen.
She also told Saun that she was going to the police station to report the matter while Albert was sent to Kapit Hospital and later referred to Sibu Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries at 12.06am on February 16 while receiving treatment.
A post-mortem by forensics expert Dr Norliza Ibrahim revealed Albert died due to intra-abdominal injury inflicted by a single-blade knife.
Deputy public prosecutor Heng Yi Min prosecuted while Sandra was unrepresented. — Borneo Post Online
