Nine Filipinos have been found guilty of waging war against the Yang di-Pertuan Agong in Lahad Datu during the armed incursion of Lahad Datu, Sabah in 2013, which left dozens dead.
The Star Online reports that the Kota Kinabalu High Court convicted the nine yesterday. They now face either the death penalty or a life sentence.
Among the nine was Datu Amir Bahar Hushin Kiram, the son of the late self-styled Sulu sultan Ismail Kiram, the news site reported.
It was reported that Justice Stephen Chung had also found them guilty of being members of a terrorist group.
“Following today’s high court conviction, nine of the Filipinos face an option of death sentence or life in prison. The court will make a decision on Tuesday,” N. Sivananthan, counsel for the Filipino militants, told AFP.
“I hope the nine will be spared the death sentence,” he added.
A total of 29 people — 26 Filipinos and three Malaysians — went on trial, with 12 Filipinos acquitted.
Sivananthan said three Malaysians and five remaining Filipinos face up to 30 years in prison.
Clashes between the gunmen and Malaysian forces, who launched a ground and air attack on their hideout, led to at least 70 deaths, mostly of militants.
After almost seven weeks of fighting, some of the militants fled the palm oil plantation where they had been hiding and returned to the Philippines.
A total of 800,000 Filipinos live in Sabah, making up about a quarter of the population of the state, which is just a short boat ride from the southern Philippines.
The court decision was made inside a tightly secured prison building in the resource-rich Sabah state capital Kota Kinabalu. — With text from AFP
