SEREMBAN: A manager of a company running a nasi kandar restaurant has been fined RM100,000 by the Sessions Court here after he pleaded guilty to a charge of storing subsidised cooking oil at an unlicensed premise.
Judge Mohamad Kamil Nizam ordered 38-year-old Bangladeshi Das Jhonny Chardra to serve six months in jail in the event he was unable to pay the fine.
The accused was charged with storing 1,241kg of the controlled item in jerry cans at a premise not licensed by the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry.
The offence was committed at a hostel for restaurant employees at around 3.15pm on April 26, 2024.
Das Jhonny was charged under Section 20(1) of the Control of Supplies Act 1961 which is punishable under Section 22(1) of the same legislation.
Offenders can be fined up to RM1mil, jailed for up to three years, or both upon conviction.
Das Jhonny previously claimed trial when charged on Dec 19 last year.
In mitigation, the lawyer for the accused, Ashok Atimulan, said his client was married with a child and had to provide for his parents back home.
He said the accused, who was the main provider for the family, was also remorseful.
"This is my client's first offence and he has been cooperative with the authorities since the raid.
"I am pleading for a light sentence in the form of a fine and that his passport be returned," he said.
Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry deputy public prosecutor Nor Alimah Mohd Sanusi pushed for a heavy sentence, adding that there was a reason why Parliament had increased the fines for such offences from RM100,000 to RM1mil.
Nor Alimah said the leakage of controlled goods is a national issue that affects the country's economy and the people.
"The public interest factor requires the court to impose a severe punishment to be able to deter other traders from committing the same offence," she said.
