Business owner also jailed a day for animal cruelty
BUKIT MERTAJAM: A 46-year-old durian plantation and landscaping business owner has been sentenced to one day’s jail and fined RM12,000 in default six months’ jail by the Magistrate’s Court here for dragging a dog on the road using a motorcycle.
Tan Chee Keong (pic) pleaded guilty to causing pain to the dog by dragging it with a 182cm chain in Taman Sukun Indah here at 12.06am on Nov 21 last year.
He served the one-day jail term yesterday and paid the fine.
He was charged under Section 44(1)(d) of the Animal Act 1953, which carries a fine of up to RM50,000, up to a one-year imprisonment, or both, upon conviction.
The charge was read to Tan in Hokkien by a court interpreter before he acknowledged and pleaded guilty before magistrate Mohd Harith Mohd Mazlan yesterday.
During the proceedings, various pieces of evidence were presented in court, including video footage of the incident.
In mitigation, lawyer Anas Hakimi from the National Legal Aid Foundation said Tan, who has an eight-year-old child to support, has been without an income for two months.
He said Tan has stopped working as he was still traumatised over the incident.
Deputy public prosecutor Roziman Awang Tahrin from the state Veterinary Department prosecuted the case.
It was believed that Tan was attempting to dispose of the dog from his premises when the incident was recorded on a video.
The latest case followed two similar incidents of dog abuse.
In safe hands: The dog was injured in the incident but has now recovered and is under the state Veterinarian Department’s care. — ZHAFARAN NASIB/The Star
In August last year, food stall owner Chok Boon Kwong, 61, was fined RM20,000 after he pleaded guilty to tying a pet dog to his car and dragging it along a road at Kampung Sri Parit in Lukut, Port Dickson, Negri Sembilan, for 2km.
The canine eventually died of its injuries.
In April last year, an 18-year-old student pleaded guilty to setting a dog on fire in Johor Baru, a month earlier.
Braden Yap was ordered by the Sessions Court to be caned lightly seven times in open court and placed on a good behaviour bond for one year with a surety of RM10,000.
In May, the caning was revoked by the High Court, which found that under the law concerned, two sentences cannot be imposed on an accused.
Yap was ordered to undergo only the good behaviour bond.
