KOTA KINABALU: A salesman was jailed for seven months by the Magistrate’s Court here yesterday for possessing a stolen vehicle.
Gibson Chong pleaded guilty before magistrate Mohd Faiz Omar to a charge under Section 411 of the Penal Code which is punishable by a maximum jail of five years or a fine or both upon conviction.
The accused was caught with the stolen car belonging to a 47-year-old woman in front of a building in Inanam in May this year.
Earlier, in mitigation, counsel Alicia Villonin of the Yayasan Bantuan Guaman Kebangsaan, who represented the accused, urged the court to impose a light sentence on her client as the accused is first offender.
She said that by pleading guilty to the charge, the accused, who also earned a living by doing a part-time job, had saved the court tremendous time and cost.
In reply, prosecuting officer Inspector Jakariya Jupakkal prayed for an appropriate sentence to be given to the accused and requested for the car to be returned to its rightful owner upon appeal, if any.
The court then ordered for the vehicle to be returned back to its rightful owner.