THE High Court today found Yew Wei Liang guilty of causing the death of a man in a road rage incident four years ago. 

The former IT consultant, 45, was charged under Section 304(a) of the Penal Code with culpable homicide not amounting to murder. 

Judge Julia Ibrahim said the prosecution had proved beyond reasonable doubt its case against Yew. 

The court will hear mitigation from both prosecution and defence at 2pm. 

“The burden of proof to self-defence against the threats of bodily injuries is on the shoulders of the accused under Section 105 of the Evidence Act 1950,” Julia said.  

“The accused failed to prove that there was a threat of bodily injury towards him and his wife from the deceased,” she added. 

While Yew had the right to protect his car from being damaged by the deceased, the judge noted that this right did not extend to causing death.  

Yew was previously charged with murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code after a road rage incident leading to the death of Syed Muhammad Danial Syed Syakir, 29, near Bandar Baru Bangi in August 2019. 

In July, he was ordered to enter his defence after the High Court found that he had initiated the provocation which led to the victim’s death at the scene. 

According to the judge, Yew had taken action beyond his right to self-defense by repeatedly running into Syed Muhammad Danial although the threat against Yew had abated by then by Syed’s running away.   

In the August 10, 2019 incident, the deceased had driven his vehicle into the 40-year-old suspect’s car near the Sungai Besi toll plaza, and driven off. 

The suspect pursued and caught up with him at the Bandar Baru Bangi interchange where a scuffle ensued. 

Passers-by broke up the fight and the two drivers returned to their cars, but the deceased, a 29-year-old, returned with a baseball bat and began smashing the other car’s hood.

The suspect is believed to have then driven his vehicle into the deceased, who was pinned between the vehicle and the road divider. He was brought to the hospital, where he died. – December 5, 2023.