M'sian teen boy issues apology in court for allegedly stabbing girl, 16, to death in school

A teenage boy, 15, on trial for the murder of a 16-year-old girl at his school in Malaysia has expressed remorse in court, after the High Court ruled there was a prima facie case against him.

He was 14 when he allegedly committed the murder.

The High Court made the ruling, according to China Press, moving the case into the defence stage.

The six-day prosecution stage of the trial began on Aug. 3 and concluded on Aug. 11.

Testified standing beside the dock

The boy's lawyer, Kitson Foong, said that because his client is a minor, he did not sit in the dock, but stood beside it and gave his testimony unsworn.

According to Malaysia media, the lawyer said: "He also said he was sorry for what happened and for the consequences, including the death. After that, we went straight into the opening statement."

The boy is set to testify.

He was deemed fit to stand trial following a three-month psychiatric assessment.

Defence to argue mental state

The defence will also call on a doctor at a psychiatric hospital in Perak, as well as a forensic psychiatry consultant, to support a defence for insanity.

The magistrate's court had earlier referred the boy to the psychiatric hospital, the defence lawyer said.

He added that the doctor had submitted a written report, which the court has accepted as evidence, and that the proceedings focused on explaining its contents and the psychiatric concepts involved.

The murder charge carries the death penalty, or jail of not less than 30 years and not more than 40 years, and 12 strokes of the rotan upon conviction.

However, the death sentence cannot be imposed on an individual who was a child at the time of the offence, New Straits Times reported.

Background

A 14-year-old male student allegedly stabbed and killed a 16-year-old female schoolmate, Yap Shing Xuen, in a secondary school toilet in Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, on Oct. 14, 2025.

The suspect, who faced a murder charge, was later ruled fit to stand trial following psychiatric evaluations and pleaded not guilty in February 2026.