SIBU: A 31-year-old man was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment and two strokes of the cane by the Sessions Court here on Monday after he pleaded guilty to robbing a convenience store cashier at knifepoint and fleeing with RM500.
Sessions Court Judge Musyiri Peet imposed the sentence on Mohamad Hassani Mustapa from Kuching, ordering that the jail term take effect from the date of his conviction.
According to the facts of the case, the complainant, a 24-year-old cashier, was attending to customers at a convenience store in Sungai Merah at about 3 pm on June 24 when a man wearing a motorcycle helmet and face mask approached the payment counter under the pretext of buying a drink.
The accused then allegedly produced a folding knife and pointed it at the cashier while demanding money from the cash register.
Fearing for her safety, the cashier handed over RM500 before fleeing the premises. The accused allegedly searched the cashier’s area for more money and attempted to pursue the victim after she escaped from the shop.
Police arrested the accused on June 29 following information received from the public. He was apprehended by Criminal Investigation Department (CID) personnel at Lorong Kuda 2 after members of the public had reportedly restrained him following an altercation.
During the arrest, police seized a black sling bag, a folding knife and a pair of scissors.
Investigations revealed that the accused allegedly admitted committing the robbery while wearing the same clothing and motorcycle helmet recovered by investigators. He also admitted using the seized folding knife during the commission of the offence.
The prosecution represented by DPP Cynthia Emmelda Jerry further informed the court that the RM500 stolen during the robbery had been spent on online gambling.
