Jail and rotan for illegal entry Viets
Published on: Wednesday, June 27, 2018
Kota Kinabalu: Thirteen Vietnamese fishermen were among 18 foreigners penalised by the Sessions Court, Tuesday, for illegal entry.They were found on board a foreign fishing vessel at 4.37pm on June 19 off Pulau Balambangan, Kudat.The Vietnamese were sentenced to four months' jail each. They were also ordered to be caned once except Tran Tam, 50, Ngien Van Thanh, 50,Tran Quang Tung, 54, and Nguyen Tan Dung, 18.
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The Vietnamese, Tran Tam, Ngien Van Thanh, Le Van Hrlen, Ngo Van Men, Vo Tong Dat, Doan Ban Thuc, Tran Van Trung, Ngo Ngoc Hoi, Bui Ngoc Trieu, Nguyen Van Hoang, Tran Quang Tung, Le Van Ninh and Nguyen Tan Dung, aged between 18 and 54 pleaded guilty separately before Judge Azreena Aziz.Counsel Hamidah Ambo, representing the Vietnamese, requested for lenient sentence on the grounds that the remand order had taught them a lesson.The 13 worked as fishermen earning about RM500 a month, said Hamidah, adding they wanted to be reunited with their families in Vietnam.Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Nurun Nazifah Muhammad Iyen applied for an adequate sentence be imposed.
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The charge under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63, which provides for a jail term of up to five years, or a fine of up to RM10,000, on conviction was read to them by a Vietnamese interpreter.Five other Vietnamese fishermen were charged with fishing illegally in Malaysian waters.
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They were Le Quoc Hien, 34, Le Cao Thuong, 35, Nguyen Zhanh Bao, 36, Nguyen Van Sa, 33, and Son Dat, 30.All pleaded not guilty before Judge Noor Hafizah Mohd Salim to the charge after it was read to them by a Vietnamese interpreter.They were found in a foreign fishing boat about 46 nautical miles northwest of Pulau Mantanani, off Kudat They were charged under Section 15(1) of the Fisheries Act 1985, punishable under Section 25(b) of the same act, which provides for a fine of up to RM1 million for a skipper and RM100,000 for each crew, on conviction.The court set July 2 for re-mention of the case and ordered all the Vietnamese remanded further.Earlier, counsel PJ Perira representing the accused, applied for an early mention date and informed the court that he would write a representation letter.Deputy Public Prosecutor Nurun Nazifah Muhammad Iyen from the Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) prosecuted.Meanwhile, a local was fined RM20,000 for allowing illegal immigrants to be on board his vehicle.Mawardi Rosly was found guilty by Judge Azreena Aziz to committing the offence at 8.25am on Sept 15, 2017 at KM17, Jalan Papar-Beaufort, Kimanis.He was ordered to pay a fine of RM10,000 or six months jail on each illegal immigrant.The offence under Section 55E (1) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 provides for fine of between RM5,000 or RM30,000 or a jail term of up to 12 months or both for each illegal immigrant found at the premises, on conviction.Five Filipinos also admitted to staying in the State illegally. They were Sul Diana, Sole Andy, Katerina Luma, Sira Ambo Tuo and Faiz Atala who confessed to having stayed in the State illegally between nine months and five years.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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