THE Magistrates Court yesterday turned down the deputy public prosecutor’s application to revoke the bail for Md Jali Hj Udin, who is facing charges of criminal intimidation and assaulting a 68-year-old datin and her husband, a dato, two years ago.
Magistrate Lailatul Zubaidah Hj Mohammad Hussain said that her decision to continue Md Jali’s bail conditions was in order to give him time to seek a new defence counsel.
Magistrate Zubaidah’s decision yesterday followed her granting defence counsel Sheikh Nordin to withdraw from representing the defendant in court.
Md Jali, 45, is accused of threatening and injuring Datin Hjh Naimah Hj Razali, 68, and her husband Dato Paduka Hj Abdullah Hj Md Jaafar, 69, with a machete as well as damaging the complainant’s properties during an incident on May 3, 2008 in the vicinity of Jalan Pengiran Othman in Tutong.
The extent of the injuries sustained in the alleged attack were not reported yesterday.
Md Jali was arrested at his home on Wednesday after not appearing in court that morning. Magistrate Zubaidah yesterday told the court he had forgotten about the hearing due to “stress and pressure from being suspended from work”.
This was the second time an arrest warrant had been issued for Md Jali following him “forgetting” his court date.
Magistrate Zubaidah told Md Jali to appear for his trial on March 17 or his bail will be revoked and he will be arrested again, but this remanded in custody. She added that the trial will commence whether or not Md Jali is represented by a defence counsel.
During the brief proceedings yesterday, the charges against Md Jali were presented to the court.
If found guilty of threatening to cause injury to Datin Hjh Naimah, Md Jali faces up to three years in jail or a fine, or both, while the charge for possession of an offensive weapon carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail and three strokes of the cane.
He also faces a charge of “wrongful restraint” for stopping Datin Hjh Naimah’s husband, Dato Paduka Hj Abdullah, from “proceeding in any direction which he has a right to proceed”. This charge carries a maximum penalty of one year in jail and a fine.
For the two charges of injuring Dato Paduka Hj Abdullah and Datin Hjh Naimah, Md Jali faces a penalty of up to three years in jail and a fine for each charge.
Md Jali also faces a charge of vandalising Dato Paduka Hj Abdullah’s car and a charge for damaging Datin Hjh Naimah’s handphone. Each of these charges carry a penalty of up to five years in jail and two strokes of the cane. Md Jali has pleaded not guilty to all charges.The Brunei Times
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