Redza Zainurin was accused of causing the death of the six-year-old boy at a house at around 2.36pm that day.
Redza, who is unemployed, was charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code with murder, which carries the death penalty or imprisonment of not less than 30 years upon conviction.
The charge was read before magistrate Amalina Basirah Top. No plea was recorded, as the case falls under the jurisdiction of the High Court.
Separately, the accused pleaded guilty to a charge of consuming methamphetamine and amphetamine.
This charge, under Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, carries a fine of up to RM5,000 or imprisonment of up to two years.
The accused will be sentenced for this offence after the court is furnished with a pathology report.
Both cases have been fixed for mention on March 24.
In separate proceedings in the sessions court, the victim’s 25-year-old mother was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to exposing her son to physical abuse.
She admitted to allowing the boy to be hit, pinched, and slapped, which ultimately led to his death. The abuse reportedly occurred at the same house between Jan 8 and 9.
The charge, under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001 and punishable under Section 31(2), was read before judge Noorshila Kamaruddin.
During mitigation, her lawyer, Aidil Akmal, told the court that the accused had another six-month-old child who was present during the incident.
He said the woman’s husband only occasionally visited their children and that the couple was in the midst of a divorce.
“When the boy became unresponsive, she called for an ambulance despite her boyfriend’s attempts to stop her. She regrets the incident deeply and continues to grieve the loss of her son,” he said.
In addition to the prison sentence, the judge barred the accused from taking her other child into her care for five years following her release.
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