FIVE CHARGED WITH CAUSING FRIEND’S DEATH IN HOTEL SWIMMING POOL

Five people were charged in the Magistrate's Court today with causing the death of their friend in a swimming pool last week. The accused - D Maharaj, 36; B Shanmugaservai, 34; Faezatun Firus Arifin, 42; R Praveena, 31; and S Suvipra, 34 - pleaded not guilty when the charge was read before Magistrate Uthman Abd Ghani. They were jointly accused of causing the death of S. Prawinthan, 38, in the hotel swimming pool in Port Dickson at 2 am on July 13. The charge, under Section 304A of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34 of the same act, carries a maximum jail term of two years or a fine, or both upon conviction. Deputy Public Prosecutor Nadia Ezzati Mohd Zainal offered bail of RM8,000 for each accused and asked the court to impose an additional condition that they do not disturb prosecution witnesses until the disposal of the case. The court allowed all the accused bail of RM4,000 each with one surety. Maharaj, Shanmugaservai, Faezatun, and Suvipra were represented by lawyer Wan Shahir Azmir Wan Mohd Razi, while Shamsul Sulaiman appeared for Praveena. In the same court, the five people pleaded not guilty to a second charge of inserting drugs into their bodies. The offence was allegedly committed at the Port Dickson police headquarters between 12:20 am and 1:00 am on July 14. The court allowed them bail of RM2,000 each and fixed Sept 3 for mention of both cases. Source: BERNAMA News Agency