Laptop containing Musa’s suit among stolen items

KOTA KINABALU: A kitchen helper received a lengthy jail term from the Magistrate’s Court here for keeping and disposing of stolen items, including government’s properties, a laptop containing a soft copy of a suit filed by Tan Sri Musa Aman against the Head of State and Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal last month, which was reported lost from the rented house of a High Court deputy registrar.

Magistrate Stephanie Sherron Abbie imposed a total of 63 months custodial sentence on Wan Adzuawanan Jasnan, 22, who hails from Lahad Datu, after he pleaded guilty to all five charges yesterday.

On the first count, the accused was jailed for 14 months for disposing of stolen properties by selling a laptop belonging to the deputy registrar, Mohd Aizat Abdul Rahim, aged 31.

In the laptop were government’s properties including the information, data and the said suit, at a hospital parking lot here on October 28.

The accused was convicted under Section 414 of the Penal Code which provides for a jail term of up to five years or a fine or both, upon conviction.

On the second count, the accused was jailed for 14 months for possessing stolen items, namely the Malaysian identity card of Mohd Aizat, his working card, a pair of sunglasses, a cellphone, a Perodua MyVi car key at a carpark of an apartment here on October 30.

On the third charge, the accused was sentenced to 16 months’ jail for possessing a stolen Perodua MyVi car belonging to Mohd Aizat at the carpark of a flat in Kinarut, Papar on the same day.

The accused further received another 16 months’ imprisonment for his fourth count of possessing stolen items, including a thumbdrive, a hard disk, 41 pieces of Giordano cards under the name of one Sadaruddin Lajamara and a plastic box containing robotic toys at the carpark of an apartment also on the same day.

The second to the fourth charges were framed under Section 411 of the Penal Code which carry a jail term of up to five years or a fine or both, upon conviction.

On the fifth charge, the accused was jailed three months for failing to explain from where he had obtained the items believed stolen, which included four thumbdrives and a card reader at the carpark of an apartment here on October 30.

The offence under Section 22A (1) of the Minor Offences Ordinance carries a fine of up to RM100 or a jail term of up to three months or both, upon conviction.

Deputy public prosecutor Megat Mahathir Megat Tharih Afendi told the court that on October 28, Mohd Aizat lodged a police report stating that on the same day at about 7am at his rented house, when searching for his wallet, he found that the government properties which were put on a couch at the house living room had gone missing.

The prosecution said the properties reported missing contained the information, data and the soft copy of the said suit.

The prosecution further explained that Mohd Aizat only came to know that these items and his belongings had gone missing when he found out that the house gate and door were unlocked.

Based on a tip-off, the accused was arrested at a nearby neighbouring area and the accused then led the police to the discovery of the laptop from its buyer and the buyer told the police that the laptop was sold by the accused for RM400.

The court ordered the accused, who was represented by counsel Chua Chinn Harn from the National Legal Aid Foundation, to serve all his jail terms consecutively.

In a separate case, another man was jailed for 36 months by the same court here for possessing a stolen laptop bag.

Mohd Iq Ruzaini Mahadi, 23, admitted to keeping the laptop bag which was reported missing by Mohd Aizat at the apartment on October 31.