Juvenile among 43 charged

PETALING JAYA: Another 43 people, including a juvenile, were charged in two magistrate's courts here yesterday with various offences linked to the recent clashes at the Kampung Medan area, bringing the number charged to 75.

 

SENTENCING DAY ... seven of those who pleaded guilty on Thursday walking into the magistrate's court in Petaling Jaya yesterday. Ismail Husin (middle) was jailed six months. Five others later changed their plea.

All claimed trial to the charges which included participating in an unlawful assembly and possession of offensive weapons in public places.

Eleven of the 43 were brought before magistrate Noor Hayati Mat.

Seven of them, Sharuddin Wahab, 30, Azanizam Md Ali, 26, Zahari Hashim, 36, Mohd Yusof Bero, 33, Abdul Tauhid Abd Latif, 33, Roshaimi Rashidi, 33 and Mohd Easan Rawyan, 57, from Taman Datuk Harun, pleaded not guilty to being part of an unlawful assembly along the main road of Taman Medan on March 10 at 2.20am.

They were each allowed RM3,000 bail with one surety by Noor Hayati and hearing was set for April 25.

Only Mohd Easan was represented by a counsel from the legal aid centre.

Four others, brothers Ros Azean Baba, 21, and Rosman Baba, 29, Mohd Shahril Md Nasir, 21, and Ahmad Syahrill Zainuddin, 19, denied possessing offensive weapons at Dewan Orang Ramai in Taman Lindungan on March 10 at 1.20am.

Ros Azean, Rosman and Ahmad Syahrill are from Taman Dato Harun while Mohd Shahril is from Taman Medan.

Noor Hayati later granted the four men bail at RM5,000 with one surety each and fixed April 20 for trial.

Yesterday, the court's compound was packed with reporters, police officers and family members of the accused. Some broke down when their loved ones were brought there in police trucks.

Earlier, Ismail Husin, 27, and Samsudin Abas, 53, two of the seven men who pleaded guilty on Thursday to possession of offensive weapons and voluntarily causing hurt, were jailed six months.

The other five, however, withdrew their guilty pleas at the last minute. They were allowed bail at RM5,000 with one surety each and hearing of the cases were fixed for April.

Ismail's guilty plea to his second charge of causing hurt to 26-year-old K. Muralitharan was rejected by Noor Hayati yesterday after he told the court that he had never hit the victim.

The magistrate fixed April 18 for trial.

During mitigation, Ismail asked the court for a lenient sentence saying that this was his first offence.

Samsudin, in pleading for a non-custodial sentence, said he was only holding the parang to protect his house and his family. He added that he was not at all involved in the clashes.

The prosecution team, led by Datuk Abdul Gani Patail, pressed for a deterrent sentence saying that the accused's offences were serious as they had affected national security and public order.

"We urge this court to consider public interest and impose a sentence which would be able to reflect the dissatisfaction of the public regarding this incident.

"We plead for a deterrent one, so that future offenders would realise how the court views such offences seriously and that they would not be able to get away with the wrongdoings so easily,'' he said.

In another court, five people claimed trial to possessing offensive weapons.

Those who pleaded not guilty were a van driver Nor Abdul Malek Salim, 53, and his two sons, sales assistant Mohamad Hidzir Nor Abdul Malek, 21 and clerk Mohamad Munzir Nor, 24.

The other two were a TV3 Academy broadcasting student Saiful Bahari Nordin, 19, and music studio operations manager Mohamed Mansur Awang, 24.

They were jointly charged with allegedly possessing weapons such as golok (machete), knives, a modified iron rod and a baton at the entrance of the road leading to the junction of Kampung Medan at 1.50am on March 9.

They were all charged under Section 6(1) of the Corrosive and Explosive Substances and Offensive Weapons which carries a maximum two years' jail and whipping upon conviction.

Nor Abdul Malek, Mohamad Hidzir, Mohamad Munzir and Mohamed Mansur were released on bail set at RM6,000 each with one surety while Saiful was allowed bail of RM5,000.

Magistrate Suraiya Mustafa Kamal fixed April 19 for trial.

Later in the afternoon, 27 others also claimed trial at the same court for disobeying the police to disperse from a gathering at a non-public area.

Those who pleaded not guilty were a 17-year-old juvenile, S.Sellvam, (age unknown), from Bandar Sunway, S. Sivakumar, 20, from Sungai Way, Charles Sagaran, 21, from Taman Desaria, P. Pandian, 33, from Taman Medan, Vincent Madhavan, 26, from Taman Medan, R. Thavasekar, 31, from Puchong, S. Muthalagan, 29, from Bandar Sunway, N. Sivabalan, 27, from Sungai Way, I. Rateinthram, 35, from Taman Desaria, N. Purushothmalingam, 23, from Kajang, V. Rahoo, 31, from Kg. Penaga, S. Sivakumar, 29, from Desa Ria, N. Sukumaran, 38, from Shah Alam, V. Chandrasegaran (age unknown), from Pantai Dalam, C. Thevaraj, 18, from Desa Ria, S. George Edwin, 21, from Taman Desaria, R. Subramaniam, 23, from Bidor, Perak, T. Ravi, 26, from Kampung Medan, S. Murugadevan, 32, from Sungai Way, V. Sugumaran, 28, from Tapah, Perak, S. Gobinath, 20, from Tasek Ampang, S. Damodaran, 40, from Jalan Kelang Lama, D. Subramaniam, 32, from Taman Desaria, S. Balamurugan, 23, from Jalan Kuchai Lama, L. Saravana Kumar, 24, from Subang Perdana and N. Harichandran, 30, from Taman Desaria.

They were alleged to have committed the offence at a scrap metal shop at Jalan PJS 7/16, in Bandar Sunway at about 6.30pm on March 10.

They were released on bail set at RM3,000 each with one surety. Suraiya fixed April 24 for trial.