Nine more charged over temple riots

PETALING JAYA: Nine more men including a college student have been charged at the Magistrates’ Court here yesterday for rioting with dangerous weapons in the fracas at the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Subang Jaya at the end of last month.

All of the accused aged between 20 and 44 however pleaded not guilty after the charges on them were read before Magistrate Nurshahirah Abd Salim.

They are Muhammad Qayyum Mohd Faisal, Mohd Ashraf Mohd Faisal, Absal Evastrie Abdullah, Muhamed Jalil Talib, Muhammad Khairol Anuar Zabidi (college student), Muhd Zamri Md Said, Shukri Razali, Afizal Sabtu and Nor Azmi Abdul Ghani.

They were charged together with four men who had been arraigned at Magistrates’ Court 1 here on Dec 4 and several others who are still at large for rioting and they were armed with machetes, axes, knives and clubs as weapons.

The acts were allegedly carried out at the temple in Subang Jaya here between 2am and 5am on Nov 26.

The charges under Section 148 of the Penal Code which provides a maximum jail term of five years or a fine or both upon conviction.

Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Datuk Salim Soib @ Hamid who headed the prosecution team offered bail at RM10,000 in one surety for each accused with the additional condition of reporting to the police station every month as well as surrendering their passports to the court.

Apart from Salim, the prosecution was also conducted by deputy public prosecutors Shafiq Hasim, Amir Nasruddin and Fairuz Johari while all the accused were not represented.

The court allowed all the accused to go on bail at RM6,000 in one surety with additional conditions of reporting to the police station every month and surrendering their passports to the court until the case is settled.

The court also allowed a prosecution application to transfer the case yesterday to Magistrates’ Court 1 to be tried with the other accused and set Jan 17 for mention of the case. - Bernama