IPOH: The High Court here was told today that Muhammad Zaharif Affendi's heart had stopped beating before cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was given to him.
An assistant medical officer at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital (HRPB) Mohammad Nor Shazree Shahrun Nizam, 31, said he did CPR on Muhammad Zaharif Affendi because his heart had stopped beating.
He said CPR was performed for the medical team to analyse the victim's heart rhythm and check if the pulse was still there.
"When the heart stops, we will continue with CPR for about 15 minutes, and if after 15 minutes there is still no heartbeat, we will stop doing CPR," he said.
Mohammad Nor Shazree, who is the eighth prosecution witness said this when cross-examined by Deputy Public Prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz on the fourth-day trial of DSP Mohd Nazri Abdul Razak, who is charged with the murder of student Muhammad Zaharif Affendi Muhd Zamrie, 17, on Dec 15 last year.
Asked by Afzainizam whether the victim's heartbeat was still there when CPR was performed, Mohammad Nor Shazree said the heart stopped and he did the chest pressure.
He also told the court that he would continue to perform CPR on Muhammad Zaharif Affendi even if the victim had broken ribs if the heart stopped beating.
If CPR is done correctly, rib fractures can be avoided, he said when lawyer M. Athimulan, representing Mohd Nazri, suggested that repeated pressure on the victim's chest caused the rib fractures.
Meanwhile, when reading his witness statement, Mohammad Nor Shazree said upon arriving at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Jati here at about 12.15 pm, last Dec 15, he found a boy at the intersection on the shoulder of the road near the school.
He found that the boy had been given respiratory treatment by another person, believed to be his sister and he then continued to provide respiratory emergency treatment using the CPR method.
"I examined him and found that the child had died. There was no sign of life, like no pulse, no pupil dilation and no breathing. There was blood on his face and hands," he said.
He pronounced the victim dead at 12.32 pm and then left the location.
Mohd Nazri, 45, is accused of murdering Muhammad Zaharif Affendi on Jalan Taman Jati 1, near Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Jati, between 11.45 am and 12.40 pm on Dec 15, 2023.
He is charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which carries the death penalty or imprisonment of between 30 and 40 years, with a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane upon conviction.
The prosecution in the case, besides Afzainizam, are DPPs Nasrul Hadi Abdul Ghani, V. Suloshani, and Low Qin Hui, while lawyers representing Mohd Nazri, besides Athimulan, are Datuk Mior Faridalathrash Wahid, and Aiman Hakim Kamaruzzaman.
The trial before Judge Datuk Bhupindar Singh Gucharan Singh Preet continues on Monday. — BERNAMA