A 25-year-old man accused of attacking his granduncle with a meat cleaver at the Kampung Tabuan Lot surau last month pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today.
He claimed trial before Judge Noorhisham Mohd Jaafar to a charge framed under Section 326 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 326A, for voluntarily causing hurt to a family member. The offence carries a jail term of up to 20 years, in addition to a fine or caning. Under Section 326A, the punishment may be enhanced to twice the maximum imprisonment term.
The court has fixed January 6 for pre-trial case management.
The incident is believed to have taken place at about 7.20pm on November 23 at the surau. Preliminary police investigations indicate the accused had consumed alcohol earlier outside the premises and was intoxicated when he entered the surau armed with a meat cleaver.
Witnesses reportedly told him to leave, but he refused and became increasingly aggressive. When his 70-year-old granduncle intervened and reprimanded him, the accused allegedly moved towards him while still holding the cleaver.
Fearing for his safety, the victim is said to have thrown hot water at the accused. The accused then allegedly hurled the meat cleaver at him, striking his left hand and causing fractures to two fingers.
The altercation was witnessed by several individuals and captured on the surau’s CCTV system, which is understood to show the accused behaving aggressively while brandishing the weapon.
He attempted to flee but was subsequently chased down and detained by nearby villagers.
