TAWAU: A gardener who tried to bribe a policeman with RM100 was jailed two days and fined RM10,000 or three months’ jail.
Buba Pangewa, 67, was sentenced by Session Court Judge Jason Juga, after Buba pleaded guilty to the charge against him on Tuesday.
Buba gave the bribe to Corporal Samsul Wahap, as inducement to release Buba and his friend Yohanis Pappang from Indonesia, for having expired passports.
The offence took place at the Road Check Point - RCP) in Jalan Kalabakan on March 14, 2023 at 10.15am.
The offence under Section 17(b) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 and punishable under Section 24(1) of the same Act, provides for an imprisonment for up to 20 years and a fine of RM10,000 or not less than five times the amount of the bribe, whichever is higher, if found guilty.
During mitigation, Buba who was not represented asked for leniency saying that he has a wife and four children to look after.
However, Prosecuting Officer Rekhraj Singh from MACC urged the court to impose an appropriate sentence on the grounds that it was a serious offence.
The court heard that on the said day, Buba drove a Toyota Land Cruiser and was detained for examination when passing by the checkpoint from Tawau.
During examination, Buba gave a plastic containing RM100 as inducement to release him and his friend so that they could continue their journey to Keningau to manage their expired passports.
The policeman had warned Buba few times that it was an offence but he refused and later ended being detained for further action.
