Court dismisses Jabing’s appeal against death sentence

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SINGAPORE: The Court of Appeal yesterday dismissed Jabing Kho’s application in his last attempt to escape from his death sentence scheduled for today.

The proceeding was held in front of Judges of Appeal Chao Hick Tin and Andrew Phang, and Justices Woo Bih Li, Lee Seiu Kin and Chan Seng Onn.

Kho’s lawyer, Gino Hardial Singh filed the application challenging the court judgment on grounds of apparent bias as Court of Appeal judge Phang had sat on both of Jabing’s appeal hearings. Phang sat in a coram involving Jabing’s case in 2010 and again in 2013.

At the end of the session, the court was informed that the family of Kho had filed an originating summon in the morning at the Supreme Court.

At press time, lawyer Jeanette Chong-Aruldoss, who is acting for Kho’s family, was in chambers meeting with the judge.Kho’s family received a letter from the Singapore Prison Service last week stating that he would be executed today.

Kho, 31, was sentenced to hang six years ago for killing a man in a robbery attempt but successfully made an appeal in 2013 following amendments to Singapore’s mandatory death penalty law. Following that, he was re-sentenced to life imprisonment with 24 strokes of the cane.

However, the prosecution appealed, urging the Court of Appeal to reverse the re-sentencing judge’s decision and sent Kho back to the gallows on April 5, 2016.

In November 2015, his lawyer launched a criminal motion to reduce his sentence and was granted a stay on his sentence for the lawyer to prepare his case again.

Kho and fellow Sarawakian Galing Anak Kujat had reportedly killed construction worker Cao Ruyin during a robbery attempt in Geylang Drive. — Bernama