SEREMBAN: A shop assistant who kept two protected African spurred tortoises for good feng shui was fined RM5,000 by the Sessions Court here.
Tan Mei Ching, 42, had earlier pleaded guilty to the charge after it was read to her before judge Mohamad Kamil Nizam.
She was charged with committing the offence at a house in Taman Baiduri near here at around 9.35am on April 4 last year.
She was charged with keeping the reptiles (Geochelone sulcata) without a valid licence under Section 60(1) of the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010.
Offenders can be fined up to RM50,000 or jailed not more than three years or both, upon conviction.
In mitigation, Tan told the court that she had no knowledge that keeping the reptiles was an offence and she had merely kept them for good feng shui.
Earlier, a 30-year-old man was fined RM10,000 by the same court after he pleaded guilty to two charges of keeping endangered wildlife without a valid licence.
Muhammad Nazrin Md Yunus did not contest the charges after they were read to him before judge Mohamad Kamil.
The accused, who was fined RM5,000 for each offence, was ordered to serve three months in jail for each charge in the event he was unable to pay the fines.
Muhammad Nazrin was charged separately with being in possession of a Malayan porcupine (Hystrix brachyura) and a white-rumped shama (Copsychus malabaricus) which were both protected species.
He was charged with committing the offences at around 1.30pm at a house in Felda Pasoh 1, Simpang Pertang on May 21 last year.
The accused, who was unrepresented, asked for a lenient sentence as he did not have a permanent job and had to provide for his parents.
Wildlife and National Parks Department prosecuting officer Ain Nur Shainaz Abdullah asked for a sentence that would serve as a deterrent to others.
Both accused paid the fines.
