JOHOR BARU: An artist and a family of three from Singapore have been charged at the Magistrate’s Court for fighting in a shopping mall and at a police station.
Businessman Chua Chin Heng, 56, housewife Loe Sou Peng, 55, and their son Axl Chua Kai Jun, 27, pleaded not guilty to voluntarily causing hurt to artiste P. Suresh, 46, at a shopping mall in Jalan Serigala here at 5.17pm on Dec 21.
The charge was read to them before magistrate A. Shaarmini on Wednesday (Dec 24).
The charge, under Section 323 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt, carries a jail term of up to 1 year, a fine of up to RM2,000, or both upon conviction.
The court set bail at RM5,000 with one Malaysian surety for each accused, and set Jan 27 as the next mention.
Chua and Suresh were then jointly charged at the same court for fighting at the Larkin police station at 6.15pm on the same day.
Both men were charged under Section 90 of the Police Act 1967 for disorderly conduct at a police station, punishable by up to six months' imprisonment, a maximum fine of RM500, or both upon conviction.
Suresh pleaded guilty, while Chua pleaded not guilty.
The court ordered Suresh to pay a fine of RM400 or one month's imprisonment in default.
The court also set bail for Chua at RM4,000 and fixed Jan 27 for the next mention.
Deputy public prosecutor Sarah Siti Aisyah Mustapha Kamal prosecuted the case.
Earlier, at a separate courtroom, Suresh, who is a part-time actor, pleaded guilty to voluntarily causing hurt towards Chua at a shopping mall in Jalan Serigala here at 5.17pm on Dec 21.
The charge, framed under Section 323 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt, was read before magistrate Nabilah Nizam.
Deputy public prosecutor Nor Deana Aqilah Aliman and Siti Aishah Latif represented the prosecution, while Suresh was represented by a lawyer.
Previously, a video clip of the shopping mall brawl was widely shared on social media, showing the suspects throwing punches at each other.
While fighting, the group also struck and damaged retail signage in front of some stores.
The fight apparently broke out after the wife of one of the suspects called out the other suspect for running into and spilling beer on her.
This led to a fight that required police intervention.
Later on the same day, while one of the suspects was filing a report at the police station, the other suspect attacked him, leading to another fight, according to police.
