SINCE 2000, some 2,350 inmates have been convicted of offences that carried the death sentence, says Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
He said this was based on the Prisons Department’s record up to Jan 31, 2023.
“Of this, as many as 690 (29.36%) were for the offence under Section 302 of the Penal Code (murder),” he said in a written reply to a question by Teresa Kok (PH-Seputeh) in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
He said 1,589 (67.62%) were drug traffickers convicted under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act.
“Whereas 13 (0.55%) were convicted of the offence of waging war against the King under Section 121 of the Penal Code,” he added.
Saifuddin Nasution said 31 (1.32%) were sentenced to death under the Firearms Act for illegally discharging their weapons, while five (0.21%) others were convicted under the then Internal Security Act for possession of firearms without lawful authority.
He added that 19 (0.81%) kidnappers were sentenced to death and three for gang robbery resulting in death.
He also said 194 (8.26%) people on death row had sought royal pardons or pardons from the state.
On a separate matter, Saifuddin Nasution said there were more than 150 deaths involving foreigners under the custody of the Immigration Department last year.
Of these, 121 were men, 25 were women, five were boys and two were girls.
Meanwhile, last year alone, there were 11 deaths in police lock-ups, he added.
Of the figure, nine were Malays, one was a Malaysian Chinese and another was a foreigner.
Throughout last year, the Prisons Department recorded the deaths of nine male inmates.
“They were two inmates aged between 30 and 39 years old, four aged between 50 and 59 years old, and three aged between 60 and 69 years old,” said Saifuddin Nasution.
His revelation was in response to a query by Chow Yu Hui (PH-Raub).