Three men were sentenced to six months in jail and fined for stealing a mosque donation box, while a teenager’s sentencing was deferred for a social report.
SHAH ALAM: Three men were sentenced to six months in jail by the Magistrate’s Court here today after pleading guilty to stealing a mosque donation box.
The accused, K Tineshuaran, 26, R Nishanraj, 22, and S R Danesh, 27, entered their pleas after the charge was read out in Tamil before Magistrate Muhammad Syafiq Sulaiman.
The court ordered the prison sentences to begin immediately and also imposed a fine of RM4,000 on each man, with an additional three months’ jail in default of payment.
They were jointly charged with stealing a stainless steel donation box, valued at RM2,000, from Masjid Seksyen 7 Shah Alam without permission at 4am on Feb 22.
The offence, under Section 380 of the Penal Code, carries a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine for a first conviction.
In a separate closed-door proceeding at the same court, a 17-year-old boy also pleaded guilty to the same offence.
Magistrate Muhammad Syafiq ordered the teenager to be released on RM1,500 bail with one surety, setting April 28 for the submission of a character report from the Social Welfare Department.
All the accused were represented by lawyer Swinder Singh, assisted by Ashrul Haikal, while deputy public prosecutor Muaz Khawarizmi Azfar prosecuted.
The magistrate rejected an application by the defence counsel to postpone sentencing for the three men, who were described as sole breadwinners and first-time offenders, citing no special grounds for justification.
