PUTRAJAYA – The Court of Appeal here today set aside the decision of the Kota Bharu High Court which ordered a former soldier to be compensated RM300,000 in damages as a result of being detained in a lock-up by the Malaysian Armed Forces for 311 days, from August 2014 until July 2015.
The decision was made unanimously by a panel of three judges led by judge Datuk Azizah Nawawi, who sat together with Datuk Azimah Omar and Datuk Wong Kian Kheong.
“The court found that the judicial commissioner at the time, Datuk Mohamad Abazafree Mohd Abbas, erred in interpreting Section 96(3) of the Armed Forces Act 1972 before deciding on damages to Mohamad Maliki Abdul Halim (the respondent).
“Therefore, we allow the government’s appeal and set aside the high court’s decision,” said judge Azizah, who also ordered Maliki to pay RM40,000 in costs to all the appellants.
Apart from the government, the other appellants include the commanding officer of the 5th Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment, Shifullizan Abd Aziz and the chief of the defence force.
At today’s proceedings, senior federal counsel Nur Ezdiani Roleb represented all the appellants while the respondent was represented by lawyer Shaharuddin Mohamed.
In September last year, Abazafree ordered Maliki, 35, to be awarded damages amounting to RM300,000 after finding that the arrest made against him was illegal and there was a flaw in the disciplinary action procedure, which was done recklessly.
In May 2018, Maliki as the plaintiff, filed a suit, claiming that he was wrongfully arrested after being found positive for drugs in a preventive operation at the 5th Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment, Desa Pahlawan Camp, Kok Lanas, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, which had adversely affected his life and his family.
At the time of the arrest, Maliki was serving at the 5th Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment at its Desa Pahlawan Camp. – September 14, 2023