A 15-year-old boy was acquitted on grounds of insanity by the High Court in Shah Alam in connection with the murder of a female student at a secondary school in Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya, last year. The court ordered that the teenager be detained at Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta in Perak for a period to be determined by the Sultan of Selangor.

The decision was delivered by Justice Adlin Abdul Majid, who accepted that the defendant was of unsound mind at the time of the incident. The defense successfully invoked Section 84 of the Penal Code, which addresses legal insanity, leading to the teenager’s acquittal. His lawyer, Kitson Foong, said the court recognized medical evidence establishing the teenager’s mental state as a basis for the legal conclusion of insanity.

Central to the defense was the testimony of Dr. Ian Lloyd Anthony, a forensic psychiatrist from Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta, who confirmed that the boy suffered from severe and aggressive schizophrenia. According to Dr. Anthony, the condition had caused the teenager to lose his sense of self, with delusions of godhood and auditory hallucinations commanding him. The prosecution did not contest these findings.

The accused faced charges under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder, which carries either the death penalty or imprisonment ranging from 30 to 40 years, with possible additional whipping if not sentenced to death. However, as a minor, the death penalty did not apply under Section 97(1) of the Child Act. Instead, the law permits detention approved by the country’s monarch or state ruler, per Section 97(2).

The incident took place in a female students’ toilet at the national secondary school between 9:20 a.m. and 9:35 a.m. on October 14, 2025. Throughout the trial, the prosecution presented 11 witnesses, while the defense called two witnesses, including the teenager himself.

The entire proceeding was held in a closed court due to the defendant’s status as a minor, and his identity remains confidential to protect his privacy. His lawyer indicated that treatment for the schizophrenia would commence immediately, stressing that recovery would be a gradual process. The judge also urged the teenager to acknowledge the gravity of the loss caused by his actions and to appreciate the second chance provided by the court.

Deputy public prosecutors Raja Zaizul Faridah Raja Zaharudin, Aqharie Durranie Aziz, and Ahmad Iqbal Azman represented the prosecution during the trial. The teenager had pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to him in Mandarin earlier in February.