KUCHING: A satay seller was sentenced to one month in prison and fined RM1,500 by the Magistrates’ Court today for stealing wagyu beef and salmon trout from a leading 24-hour supermarket in Tabuan Jaya on the eve of the Gawai Dayak celebration.
Mohammad Hanim Suita, 28, from Kota Samarahan, pleaded guilty to a charge read before Magistrate Ling Hui Chuan.
According to the charge, he was prosecuted under Section 380 of the Penal Code for stealing two pieces of wagyu beef and two cuts of salmon trout weighing 200 grams.
He committed the offence at a leading 24-hour supermarket in Tabuan Jaya at about 12:30 am on June 1.
Ling further ordered the accused to serve an additional one month in prison should he fail to pay the fine.
According to the facts of the case, on the day of the incident, the complainant, who was a supermarket employee, together with a security guard, detained a suspicious man at the exit.
A search uncovered several chilled food items in the basket of the accused’s motorcycle.
The complainant subsequently lodged a police report, and the accused was handed over to police officers at the scene.
Investigations revealed that the accused had stolen two pieces of wagyu beef and two cuts of salmon trout.
During mitigation, the accused pleaded for a lighter sentence and requested that only a fine be imposed.
He claimed that, as a single man, he resorted to theft because he needed money for treatment of a genital-related medical condition.
However, Deputy Public Prosecutor, Muhammad Afiq Safly Nor Kazly, urged the court to impose an appropriate sentence as a lesson to the accused.
The accused was not represented in court.
