KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — The father and brother of the Ulu Tiram police station attacker were sentenced to 30 years' imprisonment by the High Court today after pleading guilty to charges related to violent ideology.
Judge Nurulhuda Nur'aini Mohamad Nor sentenced Radin Imran Radin Mohd Yassin, 64, to 30 years on each of three charges: spreading violent ideological beliefs, providing support to terrorist acts, and possessing firearms for terrorism-related activities. He also received a three-year sentence for possessing a book linked to a terrorist group.
His son, Radin Romyullah, 36, was sentenced to 30 years for one charge of providing support to terrorist acts, and three years for possessing materials linked to the so-called Islamic State terrorist group.
The court ordered all sentences to run concurrently from the date of their arrest, May 17, 2024. As a result, both father and son will each serve a total of 30 years in prison.
On May 17, 2024, Constables Ahmad Azza Fahmi Azhar, 22, and Muhamad Syafiq Ahmad Said, 24, were killed during an attack on the Ulu Tiram police station. A third officer, Cpl Mohd Hasif Roslan, 38, was injured after being shot. The attacker, Radin Luqman, 21, was later shot dead at the scene.
The court also sentenced Radin Imran's wife, Rosna Jantan, 61, to four years' imprisonment after she pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to provide information related to violent ideology. Her sentence was also ordered to run from May 17, 2024.
Meanwhile, Radin Imran's two daughters, Farhah Sobrina, 25, and Mariah, 21, were discharged and acquitted after Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Norinna Bahadun informed the court that the prosecution was withdrawing the charge of deliberately refusing to provide information related to violent ideology.
Before sentencing the three accused, Judge Nurulhuda said the offences committed were extremely serious, as they led to the killings at the Ulu Tiram police station.
"Although the accused persons' guilty pleas may be seen as saving the court's time, that is not a form of discount for serious offences," she said.
Judge Nurulhuda also noted that, based on the mitigation arguments submitted by the defence, no proper or reasonable justification had been presented to explain why the wrongful acts were committed.
According to the facts of the case read out in court, Radin Imran frequently declared those who did not share his beliefs to be infidels. He also preached about taghut (defined as false authorities or idolatrous systems), incited hatred against the government, and spread hostility towards the security forces.
Between 2013 and 2015, he was exposed to terrorist ideology and began adopting Abu Bakar al-Baghdadi as a symbol of his struggle.
Radin Imran and his family distanced themselves from the local community and often lived in seclusion. Investigations revealed that he had inscribed statements inciting hatred against the government and security forces on the walls of his home, including declarations that the police and military were taghut (false authorities) and must be fought.
He also expressed a desire to attack police and police stations, describing deaths in such attacks as martyrdom. Moreover, he actively promoted terrorism by instilling violent extremist ideology into his family members, specifically the attacker (Radin Luqman), as well as the second and third accused, Farhah Sobrina and Mariah.
In a written statement, Radin Romyullah admitted that if given the chance, he would attack police officers wherever he encountered them. He also confessed to having fantasised about loading his entire family into a van filled with explosives and striking the National Day parade, targeting security forces, particularly police and military commandos.
Radin Romyullah further considered Radin Luqman's actions of attacking and killing police to be justified, as he considered the police and military to be infidels.
Radin Imran was charged with four offences: spreading the ideology of a terrorist group, providing support to the group, possessing a firearm for terrorism-related activities and possessing a book linked to the group.
The alleged offences took place at a house on Jalan Rabani, Kampung Sungai Tiram, Johor Bahru, Johor, between late 2014 and May 17, 2024.
The charges were brought under Section 130G(a) of the Penal Code, which carries a penalty of up to 30 years' imprisonment and a fine; Section 130J(1), which provides for life imprisonment or up to 40 years, a fine, and forfeiture of any assets used in the offences; and Section 130JB(1)(a), which carries a maximum of seven years' imprisonment or a fine, as well as forfeiture of the materials in question.
Radin Romyullah faced two charges of providing support to the terrorist group and possessing materials linked to it, between late 2014 and May 17, 2024.
The first charge under Section 130J(1)(a) carries life imprisonment or up to 40 years, along with a fine, while the second, under Section 130JB(1)(a), provides for imprisonment of up to seven years or a fine.
Rosna, a Singapore citizen, was charged under Section 130M of the Penal Code with failing to provide information related to violent ideology. Meanwhile, Farhah Sobrina and Mariah were charged under the same provision for deliberately refusing to provide such information.
The offences are alleged to have occurred between April 2017 and May 17, 2024. Section 130M carries a term of imprisonment of up to seven years, a fine, or both.
Earlier, defence lawyer Faizal Rahman appealed for a minimum sentence, arguing that all his clients had fully cooperated during the investigation.
However, DPP Mohamad Mustaffa P Kunyalam urged for a heavy sentence, contending that the offences committed were extremely serious and posed a grave threat to national security, public order, and the safety of civilians.
"The accused did not merely provide passive support or simply possess materials related to terrorism. Instead, they demonstrated their ideology by pledging allegiance (baiah)," he said.
