GEORGE TOWN: Six men were jointly charged in the Magistrate’s Court here with rioting with helmets in a public place, which resulted in injuries to three of them.
M. Yuven, 29; S. Saravanan, 27; Raagendra Marthanveeran, 24; Cheah Dishalan, 24; and Rahul, 23, pleaded not guilty to their charge before magistrate Siti Nurul Suhaila Baharin yesterday.
Another accused, Arul Kevin Raj Kannan, 19, pleaded guilty.
Initially, when the charge was read out in Bahasa Malaysia, all six pleaded guilty.
However, after the charge was read out again in Tamil, only Arul Kevin maintained his guilty plea while the others changed their plea to “tidak bersalah”.
The accused had allegedly engaged in a riot using helmets, subsequently causing injuries to Yuven, Saravanan and Raagendra at a parking lot in Batu Ferringhi at 1.32am on Feb 2.
They were charged under Section 148 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both, upon conviction.
Deputy public prosecutor Nurul Atikah Asharaf Ali requested the court to set bail at RM8,000 with one surety.
Defence counsels V. Joseph and V. Parthipan, representing Yuven, Saravanan and Rahul, appealed for a lower amount.
They argued that their clients, who earn around RM1,500 monthly, have families to support.
“One of them is working as a hotel waiter while another is a mechanic and the third is a hotel maintenance worker.
“Some of them are married and have parents to care for,” they said.
The other three accused were represented by counsel from the National Legal Aid Foundation.
Siti Nurul Suhaila granted bail at RM3,500 each and set March 19 for mention.
Sentencing for Arul Kevin will be decided after the preparation of his social report.
