BUTTERWORTH: A Bangladeshi man was jailed two months by a Sessions Court for trying to bribe a policeman when he was detained for not wearing his face mask properly at a shopping mall here.
The furniture shop worker, only known as Jahir, 49, was also fined RM10,000 in default two months' jail after he admitted offering RM150 to a policeman while on his way to a police station in a patrol car.
According to the facts of the case, Jahir had gone to a shopping mall in Prai to to buy a handphone on Feb 21.
However, upon returning home and discovering that the phone wasn't charging properly, he returned to the mall to get help from the outlet where he had bought the phone.
Policemen on patrol spotted Jahir with his face mask pulled under his chin, which is a violation of the standard operating procedure (SOP) when in crowded public places.
The policemen then proceeded to detain him and his friend, who did not have a valid passport.
They were taken to the Prai police station in a patrol car, and while on the way, Jahir, through his friend, offered RM150 to one of the policemen in the car for them to be released, but this was returned with a warning by the policeman.
Jahir's friend persisted and forced the money into the policeman's palm, after which both men were arrested between 7.50pm and 8.15pm the same day.
Jahir pleaded guilty to the offence yesterday under Section 17(b) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009, which carries a jail term of up to 20 years and a fine of no less than five times the amount of gratification or RM10,000, whichever is higher, upon conviction.
Sessions judge Ahmad Azhari Abdul Hamid ordered Jahir to serve the jail sentence from his date of conviction.
Deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Azlan Basri prosecuted the case, while Jahir was unrepresented.
