TAWAU: A witness testified today (Dec 2) in the High Court that the late Mohamad Nazmie, also known as "Ijat", was "assaulted" in a dormitory room at Lahad Datu Vocational College on the night of March 21.
The 12th prosecution witness (PW12) revealed in his statement that he saw 10 accused individuals "surrounding" the deceased in the 5 Belian dormitory room at 10pm.
Although the room was dark, the witness, who also resided in the same dormitory, claimed to have seen the first accused starting to beat the deceased along with several others.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Ng Juhn Tao asked the witness to identify the people involved in the assault.
PW12 confirmed that the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, eighth, ninth, 10th, 11th, and 13th accused joined in hitting and kicking Ijat, though he could not recall the involvement of the seventh and 12th accused.
When asked which parts of the deceased's body were attacked, the witness said that the number of people involved made it difficult to see the specific areas being hit, but they had surrounded the victim, who was lying on the floor.
Earlier, another prosecution witness testified that he found the victim shivering in a towel in the 7 Belian dormitory at 11pm the same night.
The witness described seeing Mohamad Nazmie weak and lying on a mattress near the dormitory door.
He helped cover him with a blanket, put on his clothes and stockings, and noticed bruises on his left rib and ear.
The trial, now in its seventh day, involves 13 teenagers aged 16 to 19, accused of jointly murdering Mohamad Nazmie at Lahad Datu Vocational College.
The charges are under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder, punishable by the death penalty or 30 to 40 years in prison, along with up to 12 strokes of the cane, if convicted.
Eight of the accused are represented by lawyers Datuk Ram Singh, Kamarudin Mohmad Chinki, and Chen Wen Jye, while the other five have counsel including Abdul Ghani Zelika, Vivien Thien, Jhesseny P Kang, Kusni Ambotuwo, and Mohamed Zairi Zainal Abidin.
The prosecution team includes DPPs Nur Nisla Abd Latif, Ng Juhn Tao, and Batrisyia Mohd Khusri.
The trial before Judge Datuk Duncan Sikodol will continue tomorrow.