THE Selayang Sessions Court today acquitted two company directors on charges related to the pollution of Sungai Gong near Rawang three years ago, which resulted in water treatment plants being shut and thousands left without water for days.

The ruling was made by Judge Osman Affendi Mohd Salleh after the prosecution failed to prove a prima facie case.

The accused Chai Kin San, 65, and Chai Wern Teik, 34, were charged under Section 430 of the Penal Code for committing mischief that led to the disruption of water supply.

Their lawyer Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos said his clients were acquitted and discharged without their defence being called.

“Judge Osman Affendi Mohd Salleh ruled that there was no credible evidence indicating that the accused had disposed hazardous materials into the waterway flowing into Sungai Gong.

“Thus, the court acquitted and discharged my clients from all the charges,” he told The New Straits Times. 

He said the prosecution had called 21 witnesses to testify during the trial.

In 2020, following the oil pollution that came from a factory, four Sungai Selangor water treatment plants had to suspend operations. 

This caused water supply disruption to a total of 1,292 areas in the Klang Valley, Petaling, Klang/Shah Alam, Kuala Selangor, Hulu Selangor, Gombak, and Kuala Langat, involving nearly 1.2 million consumer accounts. – May 22, 2023.