KLIA gunman fails to get 7-year jail term backdated

SHAH ALAM: The High Court has dismissed an appeal by former travel agency manager Hafizul Hawari to backdate his seven-year jail sentence for shooting his estranged wife at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) to the date of his arrest in 2024.

Hafizul will serve the seven-year sentence for the KLIA shooting after completing the six-year jail term imposed by the Kota Baru Sessions Court for separate offences.

In his grounds of judgment dated Oct 19, judge Datuk Seri Shamsulbahri Ibrahim upheld the Sepang Sessions Court's decision on Dec 5 last year that the KLIA sentences should take effect after Hafizul completes his existing jail term.

The 39-year-old had pleaded guilty to attempting to murder his estranged wife, Farah Md Isa, 40, and voluntarily causing grievous hurt to her personal bodyguard, Mohd Nur Hadith Zaini, during the shooting at KLIA Terminal 1 on April 14, 2024.

He was sentenced to five years' jail for attempted murder and seven years for voluntarily causing grievous hurt using a dangerous weapon.

The sentences were ordered to run concurrently, with the seven-year term to begin after he completes his Kota Bharu jail term.

Before the KLIA case, Hafizul had been sentenced by the Kota Baru Sessions Court on Feb 24 last year to six years' jail for seven offences involving the illegal possession of an Austrian-made Glock 19 pistol, 33 rounds of ammunition, ball firecrackers, three other people's MyKad, and driving a vehicle bearing a false registration plate.

He was ordered to serve the sentences from the date of his arrest on April 15, 2024.

Hafizul's appeal, filed on Dec 16 last year, did not challenge his convictions or the length of his sentences.

Instead, it focused solely on whether the KLIA sentences should be backdated to his arrest.

His lawyer, Nik Mohd Faris Syazwan Zainuzzaman, argued that Hafizul had been continuously remanded without bail from April 15, 2024, until Dec 5 last year, and that the nearly 20 months should be taken into account when determining the commencement of his sentences.

He contended that the Sessions Court judge had failed to appreciate crucial mitigating factors, including Hafizul's early guilty plea, lack of previous criminal convictions and remorse.

However, Shamsulbahri said backdating a sentence was at the discretion of the sentencing judge and was not an automatic right, even when an accused had spent a substantial period in remand.

He said the decision depended on the facts of the case, the gravity of the offences and public interest.

The judge ruled that the Sessions Court's order was lawful, fair and consistent with Section 292 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which governs the commencement of a sentence for a prisoner already serving a jail term.

Farah arrived at KLIA Terminal 1 at 1.09am on April 14, 2024, after performing umrah. She was accompanied by Nur Hadith.

Hafizul, who knew she would be returning, positioned himself near a pillar by the lifts on Level 3 of the main terminal before opening fire at both victims.

Nur Hadith shielded Farah and was shot in the abdomen. The bullet passed through his torso and perforated his intestines, requiring him to spend 13 days at Cyberjaya Hospital.

Hafizul fled the scene and was arrested in Kota Bharu while driving a vehicle fitted with false registration plates and found with other people's MyKad.

The high-profile case saw Hafizul escorted under heavy police guard aboard a police aircraft at Sultan Ismail Petra Airport in Kota Bharu before being flown to the air force base in Subang. He was brought to the Selangor police contingent headquarters for further interrogation.

Deputy public prosecutor Rosnee Mohd Radzuan from the Selangor prosecution director's office appeared for the prosecution.