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AFTER serving three years in prison, singer Yasin Sulaiman breathed a sigh of relief when he was acquitted of a life sentence and 16 strokes of the cane by the Court of Appeal for three drug charges.
However, the court ordered Yasin, whose real name is Muhammad Yasin Sulaiman, to be placed under custody at the Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta, Perak at the pleasure of the Sultan of Selangor.
The three-judge panel chaired by Datuk Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali made the decision after accepting the final appeal from Yasin, 50, as the appellant, setting aside the Shah Alam High Court's sentence.
After the decision was read, the 'Mimpi Laila' singer blew a 'flying kiss' to his family members and lawyer, Datuk Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, for his success.
Hearing the decision, the faces of his family members, including his 17-year-old daughter, smiled and prostrated in gratitude in the court's public gallery.
While reading the unanimous decision, Judge Che Mohd Ruzima said that the court had reinstated the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court's sentence which discharged and acquitted him.
On August 22, 2024, Yasin was sentenced to life imprisonment and 16 strokes of the cane by the Shah Alam High Court after being found guilty of three drug cases.
Judge Datuk Norsharidah Awang made the decision after allowing the prosecution's appeal to set aside the decision to acquit Yasin, 50, by the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court on November 29, 2023.
For the case of possessiing 193.7 grams of cannabis, the composer was sentenced to eight years in prison and 10 strokes of the cane.
For the case of planting 17 cannabis plants, the widower with two children was sentenced to life imprisonment and six strokes of the cane, while for the case of administering dangerous drugs to himself, he was sentenced to 10 months in prison.
However, the court ordered that the prison sentence run concurrently from the date of arrest, March 24, 2022.
Following the decision, Yasin, who was previously placed in the Bahagi Hospital for the period at the pleasure Sultan of Selangor, was immediately handcuffed by the police and taken to Kajang Prison.
According to the first amended charge, Yasin was charged with possession of a dangerous drug, Cannabis, weighing 193.7 grams at a condominium in Persiaran Surian Damansara Indah Resort Home, PJU 3, Kota Damansara here, at 5.30 pm, March 24, 2022.
The charge was made under Section 6 of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 and is punishable under Section 39A(2) of the same act which provides for a sentence of life imprisonment or not less than five years and can also be subject to a whipping sentence of not less than 10 strokes if convicted.
For the second case, Yasin was charged with planting 17 plants in plastic pots filled with soil from which cannabis was obtained directly or indirectly at the same place, time and date.
He was charged under Section 6B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 which is punishable under Section 6B(3) of the same act of the Penal Code which carries a life sentence and whipping of not less than six strokes, if convicted.
The third charge, Yasin is charged with administering to himself a dangerous drug of the type '11-nor-delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid' at the Narcotics Office of the Petaling Jaya District Headquarters (IPD), at 11.05pm on the same date.
For the offence, the charge was brought under Section 15 (1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act (ADB) 1952 and is punishable under Section 15 (1) of the same act, which carries a fine not exceeding RM5,000 or a maximum imprisonment of two years, if convicted.
On November 29, 2023, the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court acquitted and released Yasin on the three drug charges, but the court ordered him to be placed under the care of a hospital at the pleasure of the Sultan.