KUALA LUMPUR: Two men pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here to charges of creating and posting extremely offensive comments against the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negri Sembilan, Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir, on social media in August.
The accused, unemployed Abdullah Aidid Mochtar @ Ahmad Duta, 44, and graphic designer Ashadi Zul’izzi Zainal Abidin, 46, entered the plea after the charges were read before judge Muhammad Ilmami Ahmad yesterday.
Abdullah Aidid is accused of creating and initiating the transmission of extremely offensive communications with intent to offend through the TikTok account “rookiebenz_albenzauto” at 11.27pm on Aug 1, while Ashadi Zul’izzi is accused of the same act via the Threads account “razakahmad725” at 2.39pm on Aug 4.
The posts were viewed at Jalan Dutamas Seroja 5, Taman Segambut (SPPK) here, at 12.34pm on Aug 4 and 12.15pm on Aug 5, respectively.
According to a Bernama report, both were charged under Section 233(1)(a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 and face punishment under Section 233(2) of the same Act.
If convicted, they face a maximum fine of RM500,000 or up to two years’ jail, or both, plus a further fine of RM5,000 for each day the offence persists after conviction.
Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) prosecuting officer Nazrul Nizam Mohd Zameri offered bail of RM15,000 with one surety for each accused, citing the nature of the charges involving extremely offensive communications against the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negri Sembilan.
Abdullah Aidid, who was unrepresented, appealed for lower bail on the grounds that he had lost his job following the case and has been unemployed for the past three months.
Ashadi Zul’izzi, also unrepresented, sought lower bail as the amount offered by the prosecution was beyond his means.
The court then allowed each accused bail of RM12,000 with one surety and fixed Dec 1 for mention.
