Kota Kinabalu: Two men walked free on Thursday after the Sessions Court here granted them a discharge amounting to an acquittal (DAA) on a charge of having 41.9952kg of syabu.
Judge Zaini Fishir @ Fisal made the order after finding that the prosecution had failed to secure the attendance of a key witness essential to the case.
Mohd Sifihi Yusof and Sydzreel Fahmy Shamsury had been charged under Section 12(2) of the Dangerous Drugs Act read together with Section 39A(2) of the same Act, and had been in custody since February 2025.
Businessmen Sifihi, 34, and Sydzreel, 31, were jointly accused of committing the offence on Feb 27, 2025, at 9pm, at the ITCC’s basement car park, in Penampang.
The charge provides for life imprisonment or a jail term of not less than five years, along with at least 10 strokes of the cane, on conviction.
In his judgement, Zaini held that six prosecution witnesses had testified, but the prosecution had yet to close its case as two remaining witnesses, the investigating officer and the raid officer, had not been called.
The court was informed that the investigating officer had resigned and his whereabouts could not be ascertained, while the raid officer was currently detained under separate investigations.
Zaini held that the attendance of the raid officer was crucial as he was the lead officer during the operation and could address key factual issues that arose during the trial.
He noted that despite multiple opportunities, the prosecution failed to produce the raid officer in court without satisfactory explanation.
The court also found that evidence adduced, including CCTV recordings and DNA reports linked to a Toyota Land Cruiser under surveillance, had raised questions on possession, custody and control that remained unresolved without the testimony of the raid officer.
The court ruled that a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) was not appropriate and instead granted a discharge amounting to an acquittal (DAA).
Both Sifihi and Sydzreel were represented by counsel Mohd Azhier Farhan Arisin.
