Cop guilty of schoolboy Aminulrasyid’s death

Jenain fired 21 times at the car Aminulrasyid had driven. — File pic

SHAH ALAM, Sept 15 — Police Corporal Jenain Subi was found guilty by the Sessions Court here of causing the death  of schoolboy Aminulrasyid Amzah in April last year, at the conclusion of a high-profile trial that brought into sharp focus police rules of engagement.
 
Jenain, 48, was found guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder after judge Latifah Mohd Tahar ruled that the use of lethal force to stop Aminulrasyid’s car was excessive and uncalled for.

“The court finds that the situation on Jalan Tarian wasn’t dangerous to anyone, including the accused, and that it was not necessary for the accused to discharge his weapon, let alone fire 21 shots... from his submachinegun,” Latifah said in her judgement today.

The corporal, wearing a brown checked shirt, beige jacket and white skullcap, stood calmly as the judgment was read out.

The verdict caps an 11-month trial over the killing of Aminulrasyid, whose midnight joyride on April 26, 2010 turned tragic when he was gunned down by police in a burst of automatic gunfire, just minutes from his home.

The 14-year-old died from a shot to the head between 1.10am and 2am at Jalan Tarian 11/2, Seksyen 11 here after police fired on his car following a high-speed car chase through Shah Alam.

Jenain had admitted to firing 21 bullets from his H&K MP5 submachinegun at Aminulrasyid’s Proton Iswara in an effort to stop the car — which earlier ran a roadblock — but denied trying to kill the teenager.

A second policeman involved in the chase, Constable Izham Mahayuddin, had also fired his MP5 at the car but was not charged.

Aminulrasyid’s death triggered public outcry over alleged police brutality, prompting Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to pledge that investigations would be carried out openly and transparently.