Pregnant woman jailed, fined for keeping stolen items

KOTA KINABALU: A pregnant woman who is due to deliver in a matter of days, was sentenced to five months' jail and fined RM500 by the Magistrate's Court here yesterday for possession of stolen items and was given a strong reminder that she was not supposed to commit such offence.

In passing the sentence of five months' jail and a RM500 fine, in default, four months imprisonment on Noridaya Guansing, after she pleaded guilty to the charge, magistrate Mohamad Aizat Abdul Rahim reminded the accused that the offence could cause her to be jailed up to five years.

“Are you pregnant,” the magistrate asked. “Yes,” the accused answered. “What is your mitigation?” the magistrate asked further.

The unrepresented accused asked to be spared a custodial sentence, as she was due to deliver within days.

The mother of five said the items did not belong to her but belong to her friend who managed to run away when the security guard who came to know of their activities.

The unrepresented accused admitted to keeping the stolen shampoos outside a shop at a shopping complex here on March 24.

The accused was convicted under Section 411 of the Penal Code which is punishable by a jail term of up to five years or a fine or both, upon conviction.

The facts of the case stated that the security guard on duty was informed by a customer about the incident. The accused was stopped by the security guard as she was about to exit the shop, and when checked, the items were found inside her bag.