No plea taken from accused bombmakers as they need translator

BUTTERWORTH: No plea was recorded from an unemployed man and his girlfriend, charged in a Sessions Court with four counts of being in possession of a dangerous weapon, live bullets, pipe bombs and heroin, as they could not understand the charge which was read out in Bahasa Malaysia.

Sessions judge Norhayati Mohamad Yunos fixed the cases to be mentioned on Feb 2, pending the availability of a Chinese interpreter, for the couple’s plea to be recorded.

There was no Chinese interpreter present in the court yesterday to help translate the charges to Teoh Boon Seng, 34, and Yeoh Seok Tiang, 42, and record their pleas.

Teoh and his jobless girlfriend Yeoh, both from Simpang Ampat, Nibong Tebal, are alleged to be in possession of a knife inside a car at a house in Jalan Bangau, Taman Minamah in Nibong Tebal at about 1pm on Jan 12.

The offence is under Section 7(1)(A) of the Corrosive and Explosive Substances and Offensive Weapons Act 1958.

The couple were also charged with having eight live bullets under Section 8(a) of the Firearms Act 1960 and four illegal pipe bombs under Section 8 of the Explosive Act 1957 at the same place on the same day.

Teoh and Yeoh are also alleged to be in possession of 12.65gm of heroin under Section 12(2) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, punishable under Section 39A(2) of the same Act.

In the soup: Teoh and his girlfriend Yeoh being led to the Sessions Court in Butterworth.

They were charged with committing the offence at the same place at 11am that day.

DPP S. Selvaranjini appeared for the prosecution while both the accused were unrepresented.

It was reported on Jan 14 that a man, believed to be a bombmaker, was arrested along with his girlfriend when police stormed an illegal Ecstasy lab in Taman Minamah, Nibong Tebal.