THE Kuantan High Court today increased the fine of RM100 meted out to a youth to RM1,000, for violating the movement-control order (MCO) by leaving his house to carry his girlfriend’s body to a garage near her home, after being involved in a road accident last year.

Judge Zainal Azman Ab Aziz made the ruling after allowing the prosecution’s appeal against the RM100 fine imposed on the 17-year-old by the Rompin magistrates’ court on July 16, last year, after he pleaded guilty to violating the MCO by being outside the house at 3.15am on April 12 last year.

The maximum fine for violating the MCO is RM1,000.

In today’s proceedings, only the involved parties were allowed to enter the courtroom.

Hazwan Hamdan, who represented the youth, told the media later that Zainal had ruled there was a need for him to enhance the fine imposed by the lower court.

“The court is of the view the amount of fine should be increased to RM1,000 as stipulated under the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (Measures Within the Infected Local Areas) Regulations 2020, or it will be used as a benchmark by other parties to obtain a lower fine in the future,” he said.

The judge also ordered the Form Five student, as a respondent, to serve a month’s jail if he failed to pay the fine. It is understood that his brother paid the fine.

However, the court rejected the prosecution’s appeal for the teenager to perform community service for 120 hours for a period of 18 months, attend the Social Welfare Department’s interactive workshop and pay RM3,000 in compensation to his late girlfriend’s family.

Deputy public prosecutor Nasrul Hadi Abdul Ghani, in a written submission, said the RM100 sentence was too lenient and he feared it would be used as a benchmark for those who violated the MCO.

The low fine also went against the objective of the MCO, which was to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, Ahmad Deniel Roslan, who also represented the teenager in a written submission, argued there was no need to enhance the lower court’s ruling as his client had no previous criminal record and pleaded guilty at an early stage.

“What is more important is that the respondent can continue the school session and sit for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examination this year. In fact, the respondent and his family have also met with the late girl’s family to apologise for the incident,” he said. – Bernama, January 13, 2021.