Five Thai nationals have been sentenced to five years in prison each for harbouring smuggled Myanmar migrants, linked to the notorious 2015 Wang Kelian human trafficking camps.
KANGAR: The High Court in Kangar has sentenced five Thai men to five years’ imprisonment each for harbouring smuggled Myanmar migrants.
Judge Datuk Mohamad Abazafree Mohd Abbas handed down the sentences after the men pleaded guilty to the charges.
Suchat Tohdin, 38; Arun Kaeofainok, 31; Jehpa Lapi-E, 58; Somphon A-Dam, 53; and Amree Nesalaeh, 60, were convicted under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act.
The court ordered Suchat to serve his term from his arrest date in February 2022.
Arun, Jehpa, Somphon and Amree were ordered to begin their sentences from June 2023.
Four of the men were jointly accused of protecting a migrant named Mohd Belal at Bukit Wang Burma between August 2014 and March 2015.
Amree was separately charged with protecting another migrant, Zedul Islam, at the same location between February and April 2013.
In his judgment, Judge Mohamad Abazafree said the court viewed the case with utmost seriousness due to its link to the Wang Kelian incident.
“The incident in Wang Kelian shocked the nation and the world at the time and had a significant impact on the country,” he said.
He noted the court had considered the men’s guilty pleas as a demonstration of remorse.
The 2015 discovery of 139 graves and trafficking camps in Wang Kelian triggered widespread domestic and international outrage.
Deputy public prosecutor Christopher Enteri Mawan pressed for a heavy sentence, citing the offence’s serious implications for public interest and national security.
Defence counsel Fatin Hayati Abdul Rahman and lawyer V. Rajadevan appealed for minimum sentences, citing their clients’ guilty pleas which saved court time and costs.
The charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both upon conviction.
