MELAKA: Five men pleaded not guilty in the Magistrate’s Court in Ayer Keroh to two charges of assaulting two individuals at a nightclub earlier this month.
The accused Lai Jing Ho, 26; Lim Koon Leng, 42; Yee Pao Wei, 30; Bong Jia Jun, 22; and Kevin Fong Tze Weng, 39, entered their pleas after the charges were read before Magistrate Sharda Shienha Mohd Sulaiman on Thursday (May 15).
According to the charge sheet, the group is accused of jointly causing injury to Tan Wei Jie, 33, using an iron rod at a nightclub along Jalan Syed Abdul Aziz here at around 2.15am on May 7.
They were charged under Section 324 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34, for voluntarily causing hurt with a weapon in a group.
If convicted, they face imprisonment which may extend to 10 years, a fine, whipping, or any two of these punishments.
The five also face a second charge under Section 323 of the Penal Code, also read with Section 34, for allegedly causing hurt to another victim, Randy Tan Kuan Chye, 33, at the same time and location.
Upon conviction, the offence carries a maximum sentence of one year’s imprisonment, a fine of up to RM2,000, or both.
Deputy public prosecutor Hanis Aliah Ahmad Kamarulnajuib proposed bail of RM12,000 per charge for each accused and requested an additional condition barring them from harassing the victims or their families.
Defence counsel Nuradzlyn Sharmine Azrin Sham, representing all five men, appealed for a reduced bail, arguing that the amount should not be punitive.
Lawyer Kent Tan Chow Teng appeared as a watching brief.
The court set bail at RM5,000 with two sureties for each accused and granted the prosecution’s request for a non-harassment condition.
The case has been fixed for mention on June 23.
