KUALA LUMPUR: A foreign restaurant worker has been sentenced to six years in prison after pleading guilty to causing the death of his fellow countryman four years ago.
High Court Judge Nurulhuda Nur’aini Mohamad Nor meted out the sentence on Indian national Pushpa Raj Alexander, 50, and ordered the jail term to start from the date of arrest, July 20, 2022.
Pushpa Raj was charged with causing the death of a man, identified only as Murthi, in a back alley behind a cafe along Jalan Tun H.S. Lee, Dang Wangi here, between 2.20pm and 2.30pm on July 19, 2022.
The charge was framed under Section 304(b) of the Penal Code, which provides for a maximum prison sentence of 10 years, a fine, or both upon conviction.
He was initially charged with murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code, Bernama reported.
However, the prosecution later offered an alternative charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder following representations submitted by the defence to the Attorney General’s Chambers.
According to the statement of the facts, a fight broke out between the accused and the victim after the accused’s mobile phone was allegedly taken by the victim’s friend.
During the altercation, the accused slashed and stabbed the victim in the stomach with a knife, causing injuries that led to the victim’s death at the scene.
Deputy public prosecutor Goh Ai Rene urged the court to impose a heavy sentence, arguing that the accused had acted irrationally and his actions resulted in fatal injuries.
“In this case, the dispute arose over a mobile phone and prompted the accused to retrieve it. However, his actions were inappropriate and ultimately caused the victim’s death,” she said.
Meanwhile, defence counsel A.N. Subramaniyan appealed for a lighter sentence, arguing that his client had also suffered due to the incident as the mobile phone was his only means of communicating with his family.
“If the mobile phone had not been taken, this incident would not have occurred. Losing the phone meant he could no longer communicate with his family,” the lawyer said.
In an unrelated case in Shah Alam, a trader was fined RM200,000 after pleading guilty to seven charges of having in his possession imitation goods of well known brands.
Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry (KPDN) Selangor director Muhamad Hanif Asa’ari said the man, in his 30s, was charged at the Sepang Sessions Court with having items such as slippers, clothing, caps, belts and other fashion accessories bearing unauthorised trademarks of well-known brands.
He admitted to committing the offences at a premises in Telok Panglima Garang, Kuala Langat, on April 21, 2022.
Muhamad Hanif said the offences were detected during the Kita Gempur Campaign conducted by the Selangor KPDN team.
