SIBU: A 40-year-old nanny was sentenced to 18 years in jail by the High Court here yesterday after she pleaded guilty to causing the death of an eight-month-old baby boy.
Hayati Yaman, who was initially charged with murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code (provides a mandatory death sentence), faced a reduced charge yesterday under Section 304(a) of the Penal Code which provides for a maximum of 30 years’ imprisonment and fine.
Judge Lim Hock Leng ordered the sentence to take effect from the date of her arrest.
Hayati was accused of causing the death of Aariz Harraz Zahin Azman at her home in Permai Jaya at Jalan Permai on between 5.45am and 12.30pm on Jan 7, 2019.
The infant’s parents their baby to Hayati’s house around 5.45am, and then at noon the same day, they received a phone call from her saying that the boy had trouble breathing.
When the couple arrived at 12.50pm they found Aariz lifeless.
They rushed him to Sibu Hospital where he was admitted into the pediatric intensive care unit.
His condition continued to deteriorate with multiple episodes of cardiac arrest on Jan 8 and 9.
Aariz was extubated at 11.45am on Jan 13 after he was confirmed brain-dead.
After Hayati was arrested on Jan 14, 2019, investigations found that around 10am on Jan 7, she violently shook Aariz three times because he would not stop crying.
When he suddenly stopped crying she also stopped shaking him, then check his heartbeat upon noticing that he was still. As he had a pulse she assumed that he had fallen asleep.
At around 10.30am, Hayati realised that the boy had difficulty breathing. She massaged his back, but it did not help. Instead, he became weaker and soon his limbs stopped moving.
At around noon, she called the baby’s mother to ask her to pick him up.
A post-mortem examination found that the victim sustained head and neck injury in the form of cerebral oedema, subdural haemorrhage, brainstem contusion and cervical spinal cord contusion which resulted in his death.
The stretching and tearing were consequences of whiplash motion due to violent shaking.
In her submission, deputy public prosecutor Yong Suk Hui said the court should take into consideration the crushing effect of the baby’s death on the parents.
In passing sentence, Lim took into consideration the mitigation by the counsel and deputy public prosecutor, the plea of the accused, impact on the victim, Hayati’s previous conviction, public interest, the facts of case and circumstances surrounding it.
He also struck out the principal charge (for murder) against the accused.
