Pendakwa Raya v Ilham Utama Sawai Suardi

Appellant(s): Pendakwa Raya

Respondent(s): Ilham Utama Sawai Bin Suardi

• YA Dato' Che Mohd Ruzima Bin Ghazali
• YA Dato' Azizul Azmi Bin Adnan
• YA Dato' Azmi Bin Ariffin

• The respondent was convicted by the High Court on three drug-related charges, including two for trafficking cannabis under s. 39B(1)(a) Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
• The High Court imposed sentences of imprisonment and 12 strokes of whipping for each trafficking charge, ordering all sentences, including whipping, to run concurrently.
• The appellant (prosecution) appealed against the High Court's order for the whipping sentences to run concurrently, while the respondent appealed against his conviction and sentence.

• Whether the High Court possessed the legal power or discretion to order multiple sentences of whipping to run concurrently.
• The absence of specific statutory provisions in Malaysian law, unlike for imprisonment, that explicitly permit concurrent execution of whipping sentences.
• The binding precedent set by the Federal Court, which held that courts lack the authority to order concurrent whipping in the absence of such legislative enablement.

• The Court of Appeal allowed the appellant's appeal, finding that the High Court's order for concurrent whipping sentences was contrary to established legal principles.
• The Court affirmed that there is no statutory power or judicial discretion for courts to order whipping sentences to run concurrently.
• Consequently, the Court set aside the High Court's order for concurrent whipping and directed that the whipping sentences for the trafficking charges be executed consecutively.