KUCHING: A former barber was today fined RM6,000 or a month in jail after he pleaded guilty to possessing several boxes of firecrackers.
Yap Chin Hui, 31, pleaded guilty to possessing 57 boxes of various types of firecrackers in his house.
In mitigation, Yap told the Magistrates’ Court here that he had to sell the contraband after his barber business collapsed following the imposition of the movement control order (MCO) and he needed money to pay for his house installments.
The accused was charged under Section 8 of the Explosives Act 1957. He paid the fine.
In SIBU, a man with 12 previous criminal records was arrested for processing explosives on Tuesday.
Sibu District police chief ACP Stanley Jonathan Ringgit said the suspect was in possession of processed illegal explosives, namely a type of firecracker known locally as mercun kelapa.
The 33-year-old suspect was a former drug addict and currently jobless.
“The suspect was arrested at about 2.30pm in a house at Jalan Rambutan here.
“As a result of further police investigation, it was found that the suspect has a record for 12 previous crimes,” he said.
According to Stanley, the police team searched the suspect’s residence and found three mercun kelapa of various sizes.
Apart from the explosives, he said eight units of laptops of various models were also found.
The case is being investigated under Section 8 of the Explosives Act 1957.
