On Monday, we reported of an incident where a non-Muslim teen hailing from Sarawak was physically assaulted by a man who accused him of not fasting during Ramadan.
After a clip of the incident went viral on social media, police later arrested the man, Abdul Razak Ismail, and brought him to court, where he was charged with causing voluntary hurt under Section 323 of the Penal Code.
If convicted, he faces up to two years imprisonment, a RM2,000 fine or both.
Case gets classified as DNAA
However, in an unexpected twist, the case was eventually classified as a discharge not amounting to acquittal (DNAA) while court proceedings were underway at the Johor Bahru Magistrates Court today, reported China Press.
According to the Chinese daily, a lawyer from the National Legal Aid Foundation (YBGK) pleaded on behalf of Razak during mitigation, stating he was currently unemployed and needed to take care of his wife and children.
The lawyer also requested for bail to be granted at the lowest possible amount.
The court had initially scheduled the case for re-mention on April 19 to give Razak time to appoint a lawyer and prepare the necessary documents.
However, the prosecution suddenly informed the court that they had just received instructions from the Attorney General’s Chambers to classify the case as DNAA.
Under Malaysian law, DNAA means an accused person is temporarily discharged from the charges but can be re-charged and tried later if the prosecution decides to do so.
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