KUCHING: The Magistrate’s Court here today sentenced three men to six months’ imprisonment each for stealing two decorative cannons belonging to a prominent hotel here.
Chin Jin Yih, 34, Wan Osman Yamani Wan Adruce, 36, Hilton Jovi Harryson Lily, 28, each pleaded guilty to charges under Section 379 of the Penal Code and read together with Section 34 of the same code.
According to the charges, they jointly committed the theft of two decorative cannons belonging to a hotel in Jalan Persiaran Ban Hock, at about 2.25 am, on June 5.
If convicted, they can be sentenced to imprisonment for up to seven years or a fine or both.
Magistrate Zubaidah Sharkawi ordered all the accused to serve their prison terms effective from today.
The facts of the case revealed that at the time of the incident, the complainant on duty, a security guard heard a noise outside the hotel and went out to check at what happened.
He then found that two decorative cannons outside the hotel’s main glass entrance had been cut and were missing.
Upon further inspection, the complainant did not find anyone in the area and subsequently informed the hotel’s front desk staff to contact the police.
A police report was made for further action and investigation which led to the three accused being successfully arrested in three separate places.
Several items were seized such as two decorative cannons hidden in a bush and a sedan car.
Further investigations revealed that the three accused had stolen the items in question based on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage that clearly showed their actions.
Prosecuting officer ASP Arman Ibrahim prosecuted the case while all the accused were not represented by legal counsel.
