KUALA LUMPUR: The defence team in the trial of Rumah Bonda founder Siti Bainun Ahd Razali, who was charged with neglecting and abusing a teenage girl with Down syndrome known as Bella, closed its case after calling eight witnesses at the Sessions Court hearing here today.

Lawyer Mohammad Farhan Maaruf, who represented Siti Bainun, informed the court that the defence closed the case after the eighth and final witness, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) senior lecturer, Dr Abdul Rahman Ahmad Badayai, who specialises in children and adolescents with special needs developmental psychology, finished testifying.

"The defence has no other witnesses; we (the defence) close the case today," he said.

Judge Izralizam Sanusi then ordered both parties to file written arguments on April 7, and April 14 for counter arguments, before the court delivers the verdict at the end of the defence case on May 3.

"I thank the defence and prosecution for their cooperation to resolve the case today, and the verdict at the end of the defence case on May 3 at 10 am," said the judge.

In today's proceedings, the prosecution was conducted by deputy public prosecutors (DPP), Nor Azizah Mohamad, Zilfinaz Abbas and Shakira Aliana Alias.

Earlier, the seventh defence witness, Sergeant Siti Nur Balqes Abdul Rahim, 34, told the court that Bella looked a bit scared but showed a positive reaction during the interview conducted at the Children's Interview Centre (CIC).

Siti Nur Balqes, who is also a CIC interviewer, said that at that time Bella was accompanied by a female officer from the Social Welfare Department for the interview session, which lasted 20 minutes.

"In my view, Bella was scared at first. However, she then started talking, and for me, her reaction was quite positive as a disabled child," she said during examination-in-chief by lawyer Mohammad Farhan.

When referred to the CIC interview recording of Bella, who hesitated to answer about the hot water issue, Siti Nur Balqes said that she did not notice it.

Mohammad Farhan: From the video clip we watched just now, I need your confirmation. When asked about hot water, the girl seems to have a hard time answering the question. You didn't notice it?

In today's proceedings, Izralizam ordered the public gallery to be vacated to make way for the video recording of the CIC interview to be shown in court.

To DPP Azizah's question about the movement of Bella's hand, which was not referring to pouring hot water, but only raising (her hand), in the CIC video recording, the witness replied that she did not agree.

On Nov 24, last year, the court ordered Siti Bainun to enter her defence on two charges of neglecting and abusing a 13-year-old girl with Down syndrome, after finding that the prosecution had succeeded in establishing a prima facie case against Siti Bainun at the end of the prosecution case.

Siti Bainun, 31, then chose to testify under oath from the witness stand, and she was questioned first by her lawyer during the examination-in-chief, and then cross-examined by the prosecution.

-- BERNAMA