KLANG: A married couple claimed trial to a charge of trafficking an Indonesian woman last Sunday.
Electronics company director Azhar Mat Taib, 59, and his homemaker spouse Zuzian Mahmud, 59, were both charged under Section 13(A) of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007, read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code, at the Sessions Court.
They were jointly accused of trafficking the 47-year-old domestic worker, named Seni, for forced labour exploitation, which resulted in her suffering serious injuries.
The charge carries a life imprisonment sentence or a jail term of not less than five years, and whipping upon conviction.
They allegedly committed the offence at a house in Seri Kembangan, Selangor, on Oct 19.
Deputy public prosecutor Nur Ayuni Jamri, who appeared with her colleague Norhidayah Abdullah Sani, proposed bail at RM20,000 each with one surety.
She also proposed additional conditions for the couple to surrender their passports to the court as well as being prohibited from approaching or harassing prosecution witnesses.
Defence lawyer G.S Gabriel, meanwhile appealed for a minimum bail as Azhar is a heart patient and has to support three children and his wife.
Gabriel, who agreed with the additional conditions proposed by the DPP, said Azhar and Zuzian were not a flight risk.
He said they had cooperated with the police and had no previous criminal record.
He also told the court that one of the couple’s three children was still reading law in Britain and that Zuzian is suffering from a slipped disc.
Judge Mohd Sabri Ismail set bail at RM20,000 with one surety each and imposed the additional conditions proposed by the DPP.
He also fixed Nov 28 for case mention.
