KOTA KINABALU: A foreigner has been sentenced to 12-month in jail and slapped with a RM100,000 fine after being found guilty of trying to smuggle over 4,000 turtle eggs into the country through Sandakan last month.
Sandakan Sessions Court Judge Noor Hafizah Mohd Salim meted the sentence on Abdul Nasir Razak, 57, who holds the IMM13 document - a visit pass issued to Filipino refugees in Sabah following unrest in southern Philippines in the early 1970s - on Tuesday (Sept 5).
He was charged under Section 41(1) of the Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997, which provides for a fine of between RM50,000 and RM250,000 and a jail term of between a year and five years, or both, on conviction.
The accused would also get another 12 months behind bars after failing to settle the fine.
Abdul Nasir would serve the jail sentence from the date of his arrest on Aug 21.
The court also ordered for the accused to be referred to the Immigration Department for further action on the completion of his sentence.
According to the facts of the case, two marine police vessels had spotted a boat in open sea while scouring the Bagang Sea in the east coast of Sandakan district under Ops Taring Gelora at 9.45pm on Aug 21.
The police approached the boat, which was headed to Sandakan, and told the skipper to stop but the latter ignored their orders and instead made a run for it.
The authorities, however, managed to intercept the boat. An inspection on the vessel found 14 plastic bags containing 4,200 turtle eggs.
It is believed the accused was attempting to smuggle the eggs into Sandakan from the Philippines.
Deputy public prosecutor Lim Sze Chuen appeared for the prosecution while the accused was not represented.
