IPOH: An elderly man has been sentenced by the High Court here to 38 years in jail for murdering an elderly woman at Kampung Pasir Panjang Laut in Manjung three years ago.

       Ipoh High Court Justice Datuk Abdul Wahab Mohamed ordered Mohamad Shaharudin Zakaria, 68, to serve the jail term from the date of his arrest.

       Justice Abdul Wahab said the accused will not be whipped due to his age of being more than 50 years old.

       Mohamad Shaharudin was said to have murdered Zaharah Khalid, 77, at a house in Kampung Pasir Panjang Laut on May 3, 2020.

       Mohamad Shaharudin was first charged at the Manjung Magistrate Court on May 12, 2020.

       Prior to the sentencing, one of the victim's daughters, Hawa Isa, 48, was called up to give a victim impact statement.

       Hawa, the seventh of 12 siblings, said her disabled son missed his grandmother.

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       "We asked that the accused be given a suitable punishment for what he did to our mother," she said in between sobs.

       Deputy Public Prosecutor Liyana Zawani Mohd Radzi said the victim had been killed mercilessly.

       "The accused was a friend of the victim.

       "The victim was strangled and thrown into a ditch," Liyana Zawani said.

       Mohamad Shaharudin was represented by lawyer M. Saravanan.