A Singaporean security guard was sentenced to 14 days’ jail and fined RM7,000 by the Johor Bahru Magistrate’s Court on Friday after pleading guilty to making remarks intended to insult Islam during an e-hailing ride.
Magistrate Shamini ordered the jail term imposed on 56-year-old Mohamad Anim to run from Aug 18, the date of his arrest. He will have to serve an additional three months in prison if he fails to pay the fine.
According to the charge, Mohamad Anim made insulting remarks about Islam at about 5pm on July 30 while travelling in an e-hailing vehicle from Jalan Tun Razak to Jalan Meldrum in Johor Bahru.
The remarks were heard by the male e-hailing driver, who later uploaded a video recording of the incident to his personal social media account before lodging a police report on July 31.
Mohamad Anim was charged under Section 298 of the Penal Code for deliberately uttering words with the intention of wounding another person’s religious feelings.
The offence carries a maximum jail term of one year, a fine, or both upon conviction.
Deputy public prosecutor Aizlan urged the court to impose an appropriate sentence, noting that the video had circulated widely on social media and involved sensitive issues concerning race, religion and royalty, commonly referred to as the 3R issues.
Mohamad Anim, who was unrepresented, appealed for leniency and told the court that he suffered from high blood pressure.
He also said he was in the midst of divorce proceedings and needed to attend the Syariah Court in Singapore.
The case came to public attention after a video showing a Singaporean passenger allegedly making insulting remarks about Islam during an e-hailing ride in Johor Bahru went viral online.
Police from the Johor Bahru South district criminal investigation division subsequently arrested the suspect with assistance from the Singapore authorities. A mobile phone was also seized to facilitate investigations.
