Court upholds 40-year jail term for man who killed mother

2026-03-04 - 07:53

Villagers at the septic tank where the mother’s body was found in September 2018. (File pic) PUTRAJAYA: An unemployed man who murdered his mother and disposed of her body in a septic tank will serve the maximum 40 years in jail for the heinous crime, after the Federal Court dismissed his appeal. A three-member bench chaired by Chief Justice Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh said the sentence was appropriate, given Firdaus Ismail’s conduct. “It is a heinous and morally reprehensible crime committed against a mother. The appellant went on to conceal the body after the murder. “His conduct demonstrates the scant respect for the deceased, even after death,” said the top judge who sat with Chief Judge of Malaya Hashim Hamzah and Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah. Wan Farid said sentencing for murder is at the discretion of the court, as the law allows for the death penalty or a jail term of between 30 and 40 years. “We dismiss the appeal and affirm the sentence imposed by the Court of Appeal,” he said. Firdaus, 37, the youngest of five siblings, was convicted for the murder of Faridah Mat Hashim, 63, at their home in Balik Pulau, Penang, on Sept 19, 2018. Faridah was found with slash wounds to her neck, and a knife believed to be the murder weapon was recovered near the septic tank. The motive remains unclear. The High Court in Penang originally sentenced Firdaus to death on April 15, 2022, before the Abolition of Mandatory Death Penalty Act 2023 came into force. Two years ago, the Court of Appeal commuted his death sentence to 40 years in prison and also imposed 12 strokes of the rotan. Deputy public prosecutor Zain Ibrahim today urged the bench to maintain the jail term in the interest of the public. “His family members may have forgiven him for the act, but the court must send a clear message that it abhors the conduct of the appellant,” he said. He said the body was highly decomposed when found a week later, and that Firdaus had never expressed remorse. Lawyer M Kumaraendran urged the bench to tamper justice with mercy, as Firdaus only appealed against the sentence.