MIRI: A coffee shop owner was sentenced to two days in jail and fined RM10,000 by the Special Corruption Court on Monday (June 15) for attempting to bribe a police inspector two years ago.
The accused, Wong Teck Sing, 50, was sentenced after he pleaded guilty to the charge read before Judge Nixon Kennedy Kumbong. If he failed to pay the fine, the accused will be sentenced to a two-month imprisonment.
According to the charge sheet, the accused allegedly tried to bribe Inspector Rizuan Makladin at 12.15pm on October 23, 2018 in Centre Point Commercial Centre, Jalan Melayu.
Wong, as the premises owner, tried to give RM2,000 to Rizuan to avoid being charged with a criminal offence under Section 116A (3)(b) of the Customs Act 1967 for possessing contraband.
The case is investigated under Section 17 (b) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 (Act 694) and is punishable under Section 24 of the same Act.
The offender could be sentenced to a 20-year jail term and a fine of five times the bribe amount or RM10,000, whichever is higher.
It is understood that Wong sought a lighter sentence on the grounds that it was his first offence and he is a breadwinner for his family. He has three children.
The prosecution was carried out by Mohd Ibrahim of Miri MACC while the accused was not represented.
