Court of Appeal Grants Prosecution More Time to Serve Appeal Notice on Yusoff Rawther
KUALA LUMPUR: The Court of Appeal has granted the prosecution additional time to locate former research assistant Yusoff Rawther and personally serve him with a notice of appeal against his acquittal on charges of drug trafficking and possession of imitation firearms.
The ruling came after prosecutors informed the court that several attempts to serve the appeal notice had failed as Yusoff was believed to have left Malaysia and is currently residing in the United Kingdom.
A three-member panel chaired by Justice Datuk Azman Abdullah ruled that the prosecution must first comply with the legal requirement of personal service before the appeal can proceed.
He said the court was bound by the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code as well as existing legal precedents governing criminal appeals.
“Under Section 314 of the Criminal Procedure Code, the appellant, in this case the prosecution, must personally serve the notice of appeal on the respondent,” he said during proceedings today.
The other members of the bench, Justices Datuk Mohd Radzi Abdul Hamid and K. Muniandy, agreed that the procedural requirement must be fulfilled before any further action on the appeal could be considered.
The court subsequently fixed September 8 for case management to allow the prosecution to provide an update on its efforts to locate Yusoff.
The panel also said it would later determine whether the appeal could proceed in Yusoff’s absence, depending on the outcome of the prosecution’s attempts to serve the notice.
Deputy public prosecutor Asnawi Abu Hanipah told the court that officers had attempted to deliver the notice at Yusoff’s last known address in Penang.
However, the attempts were unsuccessful as the respondent could not be located.
According to Asnawi, lawyers representing Yusoff had informed the prosecution that he is currently in the United Kingdom.
He added that checks with the Immigration Department showed that Yusoff had left Malaysia in June last year.
“The respondent is no longer at his last known address.
“Our checks indicate that he departed Malaysia in June last year and remains overseas,” he said.
Defence counsel Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali confirmed that his client is currently seeking asylum in the United Kingdom.
He told the court that Yusoff had informed him of the matter via email on June 1.
“He sent me an email on June 1 informing me that he is seeking asylum.
“However, he is aware that the prosecution has filed an appeal against his acquittal,” Rafique said.
The case attracted widespread public attention after the Kuala Lumpur High Court on June 12 last year acquitted Yusoff of both charges without calling for his defence.
In delivering its decision, the High Court ruled that the prosecution had failed to establish the essential elements of knowledge, custody and control over the drugs and imitation firearms allegedly linked to him.
Yusoff had been charged with trafficking 305 grams of cannabis that was allegedly found in his vehicle outside the Kuala Lumpur police headquarters surau on September 6, 2024.
He was also charged with possessing two imitation pistols that were allegedly discovered outside a condominium along Jalan Bukit Kiara on the same day.
The drug trafficking charge carries the death penalty or imprisonment of up to 30 years and not fewer than 12 strokes of the cane upon conviction.
Meanwhile, the charge involving imitation firearms carries a maximum sentence of one year’s imprisonment, a fine of up to RM5,000, or both.
Throughout the trial, Yusoff consistently denied any wrongdoing and maintained that the drugs and imitation firearms had been planted by certain parties in an attempt to frame him.
With the prosecution now given more time, the focus of the case will shift to whether the authorities are able to formally serve the notice of appeal and revive proceedings against one of Malaysia’s most closely watched criminal acquittals in recent years.
