The trial of the first two individuals detained under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma) will be heard from May 20.

 

NONE "Not guilty, and I claim trial" was the response from Yazid Sufaat (left) and Halimah Hussein, after the respective charges were read out to them at the Kuala Lumpur High Court this morning.

 

Yazid is accused of promoting terrorist acts in Syria, while Halimah is accused of being his accomplice.

The case is set for case management on April 22, and for hearing from May 20-23 and June 17-21 before Justice Kamardin Hashim.

 

Defence lawyer Amer Hamzah Arshad told the judge that he intends to apply for the charges to be dropped or for the hearing to be permanently stayed.

azlan The charge sheet for Yazid reads: ‘You have knowingly promoted the commissioning of terrorist acts with the intention of advancing an ideology, and this can be reasonably construed to be intended to threaten civilians in Syria.’

 

The offence was allegedly committed at Yazid’s home in Taman Bukit Ampang between Aug 1 and Oct 20 last year.

 

The charge under Section 130G(a) of the Penal Code carries a penalty of up to 30 years imprisonment and a fine. There is no provision for bail.

 

Another detainee who has yet to be charged, Mohd Hilmi Hasim, will have his habeas corpus application heard before the same judge on Feb 25.

Transfer of case

Yazid and Halimah were charged on Feb 8 at the Ampang Magistrate’s Court, but no plea was recorded pending the initial transfer of the case to the Shah Alam High Court.

NONE However, DPP Dusuki Mokhtar (left) had told reporters after the hearing that there are no judges in Shah Alam who could hear the case.

 

“Only a few judges have been appointed (to hear Sosma-related cases) - one in Kuala Lumpur and one in Johor Bahru, at least the ones I can confirm,” he had said.

 

The case was then moved to the KL Criminal High Court 2.

Ironically, just five floors below is the cafeteria in the court complex where Yazid operated a drinks stall with his wife and their employee Hilmi until their arrest on Feb 7.