PETALING JAYA: A Sessions Court judge has ordered singer and composer Yasin Sulaiman to check into a Hospital Bahagia following his acquittal of all three drug charges.
Judge Faiz Dziyauddin ordered the singer to be placed under the care of Ulu Kinta Hospital Bahagia, Perak at the pleasure of the Sultan of Selangor.
In his judgment, Faiz said the court found the accused guilty of all three charges.
"However, the court decided that the accused be released and acquitted on the grounds that, on the occurrence of the events on Mar 24, 2022, the accused was in a mentally unsound state. Although aware of his actions, the symptoms of mania experienced at that time led to a severe cognitive decline, rendering the accused unable to comprehend that his actions were wrong and unlawful," he said."
On Oct 23, the defence concluded the case after their only witness, Ulu Kinta Hospital Bahagia psychiatrist Dr Ian Lloyd Anthony, finished giving his testimony.
Yasin was directed to defend himself on Oct 3 against three drug cases after the court found that the prosecution had successfully proven the prima facie case at the end of their case.
On Sept 15, deputy public prosecutor, Raja Zaizul Faridah Raja Zaharudin, informed the court of the case closure after a reexamination of the investigating officer from the district police headquarters at that time, Inspector Muhammad Amirul Mukmin Aziz.
Muhammad Amirul was one of seven prosecution witnesses called to testify in the trial that began on Aug 28.
Yasin is accused of providing himself with drugs at the Petaling Jaya district police headquarters narcotics office at 11.05pm on Mar 24 last year.
The charge is under Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 and carries a penalty of a fine not exceeding RM5,000 or imprisonment for a maximum of two years if convicted.
The singer is also charged with possessing 193.7 grams of cannabis and planting 17 marijuana plants in plastic pots filled with soil at his residence in Persiaran Surian, Damansara Indah Resort Home, PJU 3, Kota Damansara, at 5.30pm on the same date.
The charge of drug possession is under Section 6 of the 1952 Dangerous Drugs Act, and if convicted, the penalty is life imprisonment or not less than five years and not less than ten strokes of the cane.
For the charge of planting cannabis plants, the prosecution is presented under Section 6B (1) (a) of the 1952 Dangerous Drugs Act, and if convicted, the penalty is life imprisonment and not less than six strokes of the cane.