An Indonesian woman has been jailed for seven months and fined 1,000 ringgit (about US$240) after pleading guilty to stealing from a supermarket in Ampang, near Kuala Lumpur.
A Selangor magistrate’s court also ruled on Monday that the woman, aged 37, should serve five months’ jail concurrently – at the same time – for entering Malaysia illegally.
The court learned that the accused woman, known as Rindi, was caught red-handed with 78.73 ringgit ($18.90) worth of grocery and garment items at a supermarket named the Giant Pandan Kapital in Pandan Indah in Ampang on December 13, The Star Online reported.
The recovered items included food and clothes – long beans, a pineapple, red chili, sambal belacan, fish, plus a pair of shorts and underwear.
During police inquiries, the Indonesian woman was also identified as an illegal immigrant who had entered the country without valid travel documents.
She was then charged under Section 6 (1) (c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 (Amendment 2002), on top of her theft charges under Section 380 of the Penal Code.
Rindi, who had no legal representative, pleaded for leniency. She told the court that she was the family breadwinner and received a monthly income of 1,000 ringgit.
So, the Ampang Magistrate’s Court sentenced her to seven months’ jail and another five months’ jail for not having valid travel documents. It warned her that she would face a further month in jail if she failed to pay the 1,000-ringgit fine.
Kasihan sekali bangsaku.
Kasihan sekali bangsaku.