PUTRAJAYA: Businessman Datuk Nik Sapeia Nik Yusoff remains free as the Court of Appeal here yesterday struck out the prosecution’s appeal against his acquittal for allegedly causing hurt by spraying dangerous substances at former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in 2006.
A three-member panel chaired by Justice Datuk Wira Mohtarudin Baki allowed a preliminary objection raised by Nik Sapeia’s counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah to strike out the prosecution’s appeal.
He (Mohtarudin) said the court found the questions in the prosecution’s amended notice of appeal had included a mixture of legal questions and facts of the case.
Muhammad Shafee had argued that the prosecution’s appeal was incompetent because the questions were not confined to legal questions as required under Section 50 (2) of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964.
That section states that an applicant must first obtain leave of the Court of Appeal to appeal against matters arising from the magistrate’s court and the appeal shall confine to only questions of law.
The prosecution had obtained leave from the Court of Appeal to appeal against Nik Sapeia’s acquittal and had posed nine questions.
On Jan 29, 2012, the Kota Baharu High Court allowed Nik Sapeia’s appeal and acquitted him on a charge of voluntarily causing hurt by spraying a dangerous substance at Dr Mahathir at the Sultan Ismail Petra Airport in Pengkalan Chepa about 11am on July 28, 2006.
The high court had overturned the magistrate’s court’s Jan 14, 2010 decision to find Nik Sapeia, 61, guilty of committing the offence and sentenced him to six months’ jail.
Justices Datuk Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat and Datuk Seri Zakaria Sam were the other two judges presiding on the Court of Appeal panel.
Nik Sapeia said he was thankful to the court for the decision, adding that he had endured eight years of trial.
He said his luck had taken a turn for the better during the eight years.
Deputy public prosecutor Idham Abdul Ghani and Lailawati Ali appeared for the prosecution. — Bernama