Authors: Alex Josey
Mr de Silva said he and his wife had been
friendly with Mr and Mrs Sinnappa before Mr Sinnappa was killed in a road
accident on 1 January 1978. Mr de Silva said he and Karthigesu used to play
rugby together.
Mr de Silva said that on the evening in
question, his wife and he were returning home after visiting relatives in
Setapak. They left about 10:30
pm
.
He was waiting at the traffic lights at the junction of the Federal Highway and
Jalan 222 when Karthigesu drove up on his left. Mr de Silva said he drew his
wife’s attention because he had not seen Karthigesu for a long time, not since
the death of Mr Sinnappa. His wife turned to look and she told him Jean was
sitting next to Karthigesu. Then the lights changed. When he took another look,
the cars began to move. He saw Jean smile and wave. He turned right and headed
home. Karthigesu drove straight towards Klang.
Mr de Silva said it was about 11:05
pm
when he saw Karthigesu and Jean in
the car at the traffic lights. Asked if he had merely guessed the time he was
at the junction, de Silva said no, he was hurrying home because his wife wanted
to see a particular television film. This started at 11:06
pm
. It took him about three minutes to
get to his house from the junction. So he must have been at the junction at
11:02–11:03
pm
.
Mr Ponnudurai: Jean was alert and
recognized you and your wife? She could not have been sleeping?
de Silva: No.
Judge: How could she have been
sleeping? You saw her smiling and waving at you.
de Silva: Yes, my Lord.
The jury asked him if he could remember what
Karthigesu was wearing, de Silva said: “I did not pay particular attention to
what both of them were wearing, but I can remember that Karthigesu was wearing
a shirt. It seemed to me to be reddish and flowery, something like a batik.”
The next witness was Abdul Wahab Abu Amin,
an aircraft mechanic at Subang Airport. He said that on the evening in question
he finished work at 11:20
pm
. He
was driving home to Shah Alam when at the underpass he saw a white car parked
by the side of the road. He saw the back part of the car but did not see anyone
behind it. “If there had been anyone at the back of the car I would have seen
him,” he said. Replying to questions he said there was only one car parked at
the underpass. It was not raining and there was no one walking about.
The next witness was Tan Tiong Keng, an
aircraft maintenance engineer. He told the Court that he was driving home to
Subang Jaya with a colleague when his car lights picked up someone lying on the
road leading to the railway gate. As he moved up the slope towards Shah Alam he
asked his colleague (Ting Hua) whether he had seen anyone on the road. Ting
said he had not. Puzzled, Tan said he made a U-turn and drove back. He stopped
his car so that the headlights shone on the body. He sounded his horn to attract
the person’s attention. The person was lying on his belly, and breathing
heavily. He was an Indian.
Tan said he then reversed his car and drove
to the side of the white stationary car. The white car’s lights were off. The
door on the driver’s side was slightly ajar. He saw some black stains outside
the driver’s door. When he flashed his torchlight on the door he saw blood
around the handle. He saw a body covered with blood. He told the Judge that all
this while he was in his car. He didn’t get out. He drove on and reported the
matter to the police. Cross-examined, Tan said that the door on the driver’s
side of the white car was closed but not flush. He said there was no response
from the person on the ground when he sounded his horn.
Another maintenance engineer, Cheah Wei
Keong gave evidence. He told the Court that he was on his way home on his
motorcycle via a short-cut along the railway track that night when he saw a
body lying on the ground. He did not stop but drove off.
Hours before Jean was stabbed to death, she
and Karthigesu went house-hunting together.
A sub-contractor, Lim Ming Moy told the
Court that he met them at a house in Petaling Jaya at 6:30
pm
on the evening of 6 April 1979. Lim
said while he was talking to Jean, Karthigesu disappeared for a few minutes.
When he returned he told them he had accidentally locked his car with the keys
inside. He asked for a lift, and they got into the car of Mrs Chu Tong Sang,
the house owner’s daughter. Jean and Karthigesu got out in front of University
Hospital.
Earlier, Professor Eric Sumithran, the
consultant pathologist, re-examined by the DPP, said that Jean was intoxicated
when she was stabbed to death. He judged from the result of a blood analysis
that she must have consumed three ounces of liquor that evening equivalent to
two pints of beer. It could have been any liquor—brandy, whisky, beer or gin.
Asked how long it would take blood to stop
flowing, he estimated 10 minutes, because by then the blood would have
coagulated. The professor agreed that if someone had taken precautions there
would be no blood on him.
Asked how the assailant could have held Jean
the professor replied: “I would think by holding her by her hair would be the
best way. But this is purely hypothetical.”
Replying to another question Professor
Sumithran said in his opinion it was highly improbable that two persons
inflicted those injuries from behind the driver’s seat. He added: “All my
conclusions are based on scientific findings and sound reasoning.”
The jury foreman asked him whether he had
considered the possibility of Jean having been stabbed outside the car. He said
from the post mortem he could not say where she had been killed. But on
examination of the car and the spurts of blood on the windscreen, he felt the
stabbing must have been done in the car because arteries stop spurting blood
very soon after being stabbed.
Would the assailant have had enough room to
stab in the car? Professor Sumithran: “You don’t have to raise your hand so
much. Just up to the shoulder would be sufficient. A knife goes in quite
easily, particularly if it is sharp.”
Judge Azmi asked the jury if they would like
to see a demonstration of how Jean could have been stabbed. He instructed the
police to bring the car to the Court premises for a demonstration after lunch.
The Judge asked Professor Sumithran how long
it would take alcohol to be absorbed into the blood stream. The professor said
it would take about one hour and a half to be at its peak level. If the stomach
was empty, within ten minutes of consumption there would be appreciable
absorption and peak blood levels reached within one hour. “The rate of
absorption is faster if the stomach is empty,” he added.
Defence counsel and the professor clashed
when Mr Fernandez questioned him closely on the collection of Jean’s urine and
blood samples, and upon his status as consultant. Counsel suggested to witness
that the status of consultant which the university gave him was a sort of
promotion.
Professor Sumithran: I beg your pardon.
There are some people over 60 years who are yet to be made consultants.
He said it was something doctors had to work
for. It was not like being promoted from standard one to standard two.
The DPP suggested to the Judge that the
Court should go to the rescue of the professor.
Judge: I think the professor is doing
very well.
Professor Sumithran: My Lord, we are
dealing with bread and butter pathology.
Mr Fernandez assured the professor that he
did not mean any offence and was not trying to belittle him but certain
questions had to be asked to get certain answers.
Judge Azmi said if counsel belittled the
professor he would be the first to stop him.
Professor Sumithran went on to explain how a
person became a consultant.
Before hearing resumed in the afternoon, the
jury attended a demonstration by Professor Sumithran at the main entrance to
the High Court building. Judge Azmi, the DPP, and counsel for the defence were
also present. With the help of Mr Fernandez, who sat in the passenger seat, the
professor demonstrated how the two major wounds were inflicted on Jean.
The Court resumed after the demonstration,
and Professor Sumithran took the stand once again, but there were no further
questions and he left the witness box.
***
The defence recalled ASP Ramli to produce 18
coloured photo-graphs and 22 black and white pictures. Some of the photographs
showed Karthigesu and Jean with their arms around each other. Some were taken
at Pangkor Island. Bills showed that a double room had been booked. Five days
after the holiday Jean was murdered.
***
On the 10th day of the trial (1 July 1980),
a constable, D.F. Tanggappan, gave evidence that four policemen tried to get
Karthigesu up on his feet, after he was found lying on the ground. He could not
stand. So they lifted him into a patrol car, and took him to University
Hospital. He tried to speak to Karthigesu, but he merely muttered ‘hem’. P.C.
Tanggappan told the Court that he was doing patrol duty along with P.C. Mohamed
Ali who was driving the car. They were at Jalan Templer, Petaling Jaya, when
they heard a radio message, and proceeded to the scene of the murder. When they
reached the under-pass leading to the airport, he saw a white car parked by the
side of the road. When he got out of the car he noticed a man lying on the
ground about 12 feet behind the car. P.C. Tanggappan said the man’s head was
towards Subang and his feet in the direction of a railway gate. With the aid of
his torchlight he looked into the car and saw a woman seated in the front with
the safety belt on. Both hands were on her thighs. He relayed a message to the
Petaling Jaya police station.
About five minutes later, another patrol car
arrived with P.C. Razali and P.C. Mohamed in it. The DPP asked witness if the
ground was wet. Were there any signs of urination? P.C. Tanggappan said there
were not. The ground was dry. P.C. Tanggappan said after ASP Ramli arrived he
found a denture on the ground and gave it to him.
Defence counsel, (Mr Ponnudurai) asked P.C.
Tanggappan if he saw what ASP Ramli did. P.C. Tanggappan said it was dark and
he did not see what ASP Ramli did. Witness said his primary concern was to get
Karthigesu to hospital.
Asked if Karthigesu did not want to stand or
could not stand, P.C. Tanggappan said he could not stand. Shown a photograph,
P.C. Tanggappan said it did not show the correct position of the car in
relation to a signboard also shown in the photograph. He was shown two other
pictures. He said they did not show the true position of Jean’s hands. They
showed her hands placed neatly one palm over the other, but when he saw them
they were stretched out on her thighs in front of her.
Re-examined by the DPP, P.C. Tanggappan said
Jean wore a sari. The DPP said it would not be possible for a woman wearing a
sari to place her hands the way witness said he saw them. He was questioned
again about the four constables being unable to get Karthigesu on his feet. Did
the accused not want to stand or could he not stand?
P.C. Tanggappan: He could not stand, my
Lord.
Judge: Do you know the difference? Did
‘not want to stand’ mean that he refused to stand? He ‘could not stand’ means
that his physical condition was such that he could not stand. Which is correct?
P.C. Tanggappan: He could not stand, my
Lord.
DPP: Would you know if this man was
pretending or not?
P.C. Tanggappan: No, my Lord.
Teng Hua Kiet, another prosecution witness,
said he got a lift from his workmate, Tan Tiong Heng. He said Tan slowed down
at a ‘Stop’ sign and turned right. As they were going up a gradient Tan asked
him if he saw anyone lying in the road. Teng said he didn’t. Tan decided to
make a U-turn and they drove back to the spot.
Teng Hua Kiet: My friend sounded his
horn and flashed the headlights to attract the attention of the person on the
ground.
Teng said there was another car parked further
up the road.
He said the person on the ground was lying
on his stomach and breathing heavily.
Questioned by the Judge, Teng said the car
was facing Klang. The man on the ground had his head towards Subang and legs
towards the airport. The man was about 16 feet from the car.
P.C. Mohammed Noor bin Endut told the Court
that he and P.C. Razali were in another patrol car and they arrived on the
scene after the others. He turned the man over on his back, and patted his
chest and face. He sounded as if he was groaning. They tried to put him on his
feet but Karthigesu did not want to stand up. He was carried into the rear seat
of the patrol car driven by P.C. Mohammed Noor, and taken to University
Hospital.
P.C. Mohammed Noor said that when P.C.
Razali called out ‘Encik! Encik!’ to Karthigesu he uttered the same groaning
sound. On arrival at the hospital, Karthigesu did not want to stand up. With
the help of P.C. Razali he was carried out of the car and put on a trolley.
“His eyes were closed all the time,” P.C. Mohammed Noor added.