by Theleaders | October 15, 2026 2:17 pm
BATU PAHAT, Oct 15 — A 16-year-old schoolboy was charged in the Magistrate’s Court here today with the murder of his classmate, Irene Sofiya Mohd Khairool Faisal, whose body was discovered inside a secondary school hall in Yong Peng earlier this month.
The accused, a Form Four student at the same school, nodded in understanding when the capital charge was read out to him before Magistrate Mustaqim Sukarno during a closed-door proceeding.
No plea was recorded from the teenager, whose identity is protected by law as a minor, because murder cases fall under the jurisdiction of the High Court.
According to the charge sheet, the accused is alleged to have murdered 16-year-old Irene Sofiya in Dewan Sri Tanjung at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Dato’ Seth in Yong Peng between 2.30pm and 4.00pm on Oct 3.
The charge was framed under Section 302 of the Penal Code. Upon conviction, the offence carries the death penalty or a prison sentence of between 30 and 40 years, along with a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane.
Under Malaysian law, offenders under the age of 18 at the time of the offence cannot be sentenced to death, but may be detained at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong or the respective state Ruler.
The court also prohibited any photographs or video recordings of the accused as he is a minor and protected under the Child Act.
Deputy Public Prosecutors Juanita Mohd Said and Firdaus Ruslan prosecuted, while the accused was represented by lawyers Mohd Azlan Shah Mohd Allias and Suhaila Shafi’uddin.
The court set Dec 22 for mention, pending the submission of forensic and post mortem reports at the Magistrate’s Court before the case is transferred to the High Court.
Previously, it was reported that 16-year-old Irene Sofiya was murdered after she was believed to have been killed with a blunt object on Oct 3.
The Form Four victim was found unconscious and covered in blood in a school hall in Yong Peng at 5.50pm. She was later pronounced dead.
Following the incident, the police arrested a 16-year-old male student, a classmate of the victim, to assist with investigations.
Police also seized a 96-centimetre metal bar and a sports shirt stained with blood for the murder probe.
The suspect was on an extended remand order until today. The teenager, described as the primary suspect, had been remanded for six days from October 4 to assist in the investigation into the death of Irene Sofiya.
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