Two men were each fined RM3,500 by the Ranau Magistrate’s Court after being found to be members of a Philippine-based organisation that is not registered under Malaysia’s Societies Act 1966.
The accused, Roy Martin, 35, a farmer, and Mohd Sharin Ibrahim, 40, a tyre mechanic, were charged under Section 43 of the Societies Act 1966 for allegedly being members of Kappa Rho Kappa (KRK), also referred to in the investigation as the Knights of the Right Keppers.
The court imposed a RM3,500 fine on each man, with six months’ imprisonment if they failed to pay.
The cases arose from a police operation carried out on June 5, 2026, at around 10.50am at HH Rich in Kampung Kinasaraban, Ranau, as part of Op Tik Tok, an operation targeting gangsterism.
According to court documents, a team from the D7 Criminal Investigation Department of the Sabah Police Contingent Headquarters, led by Inspector Jesmera Bandong, conducted checks on the two men at the premises.
During the inspection, police reportedly noticed three cigarette-burn marks on the upper portion of the men’s right wrists. Investigators suspected the marks could be linked to membership of KRK.
Authorities also seized two mobile phones during the operation. One was a blue Redmi phone belonging to one of the accused, while the other was an orange Realme device belonging to the second man.
Police said the phones contained videos allegedly showing material associated with the organisation.
Investigators subsequently sought verification from a crime expert specialising in gang-related activities. The expert reportedly concluded that one of the men was believed to be a member of KRK based on the identifying marks found on his wrist.
Further checks with the Sabah office of the Registrar of Societies Malaysia (ROS) found that Kappa Rho Kappa was not legally registered with the department.
The two cases are among a number of similar membership-related cases being dealt with in Ranau, as authorities continue enforcement efforts against organisations operating without legal registration.
