KUALA LUMPUR: Lawyer Mahmud Abdul Jumaat has confirmed he continues to represent the mother of six-year-old Zayn Rayyan Abdul Matiin, who is under remand for helping with the investigation into her autistic son’s murder.
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Through a statement on his Facebook page, Mahmud clarified that his continuation is based on considerations made after meeting the family.
He shared that on the night of May 31, he received a call from Zayn Rayyan’s paternal family at 11pm, after the couple (Zaim and Isma) had been detained and were due to be presented at the Petaling Jaya Court for a remand application the following day.
“I want to stress that this was an initiative by Zayn Rayyan’s paternal family, not an NGO endeavour. However, I’m uncertain how the other story emerged.
“On the matter of an official appointment letter, with the purest of intentions, I wanted to help because I felt pity for them. They had not only lost their child but were also facing remand as suspects, a considerable ordeal,” he said.
He did not think that the appointment would become a contentious issue with Zayn Rayyan’s paternal family, as there is no formal requirement for an official solicitor’s appointment letter in criminal cases.
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As long as the suspected individual or their family representative is in agreement to appoint the solicitor, that should suffice.
Furthermore, before entering court, he was confirmed by the family of the victim’s parents themselves to take on this responsibility, to argue against the remand.
He affirmed his presence in court on that particular day because he was the solicitor summoned by the family.
He questioned the family’s actions in calling him for the remand procedure in court if they claimed an appointment had not been made.
-TheStar