Kota Kinabalu: A 61-year-old Filipino illegal immigrant who had been using a forged Permanent Resident (MyPR) identity card for 18 years was fined RM6,000 or jailed seven months by the Magistrate’s Court here.
Alex Alki pleaded guilty before Magistrate Marilyn Kelvin on Monday to possessing a fake MyPR card bearing the number 701201-65-5373 under his name, without lawful authority. The offence occurred around noon on Aug 7 at the Sabah National Registration Department’s (NRD) Investigation and Enforcement Division.
The charge falls under Regulation 25(1)(e) of the National Registration Regulations 1990 (Amendment 2007), which provides for a jail term of up to three years or a fine of up to RM20,000, or both, on conviction.
NRD Prosecuting Officer Mohd Naser Mohd Nadzeri told the court that Alex, originally from Basilan, Philippines, had attempted to visit a detained family member at the Kota Kinabalu Immigration Depot earlier that day.
He presented the MyPR card at the main gate, which raised suspicions due to irregularities in its physical appearance and security features.
The matter was referred to the Depot Commander, and further checks confirmed the card was fake. Alex was handed over to the NRD for further investigation.
A verification process by the NRD’s Identity Card Division revealed that the card did not exist in their records and that Alex’s thumbprints did not match any in their database.
He later admitted to obtaining the forged document in Penampang in 2007 from an unknown individual.
In mitigation, Alex told the court he had a wife and child currently detained at the “Rumah Merah” facility.
Mohd Naser urged the court to impose a deterrent sentence, citing public interest and the need to uphold the integrity of the legal system.
He emphasised that using fake identification is a serious offence, regardless of motive, and failing to punish such actions adequately would send the wrong message to society.
The court also ordered Alex to be referred to the Immigration Department after completing his sentence, as he does not possess valid travel documents.
In a separate case, a 28-year-old man, Mohd Amirul Adam, was charged with two counts of cheating involving the sale of vehicles. He allegedly impersonated two different individuals (Mohd Fauzi Suratno and Mohd Rafig Izzat Ahmadin) to deceive a man, Refikado Jiemen, into selling him two Toyota Hilux vehicles at 10.30am on June 11 at Toyota Inanam and at 1.40pm on June 23 at Aeropod Car Park in Kota Kinabalu.
Mohd Amirul pleaded not guilty to both charges under Section 419 of the Penal Code, which carries a sentence of up to seven years in jail, a fine, or both, on conviction.
The court set Oct 8 and 9 for pre-trial case management and released him on bail of RM4,000 in two sureties for each charge. Inspector Yusdi Basri prosecuted.
