Kota Kinabalu: An office assistant was jailed by the High Court three years for helping an organised crime group steal RM24.2 million from several bank accounts.
Judicial Commissioner Ratanah Devi Yusof Perumal meted out the sentence on Mazlani Jenuary, 54, who appeared before her Wednesday.
Mazlani helped an organised crime group further its interests between April 26 and July 4, 2024, at the MBSB Bank branch here.
The alternative charge under Section 130W of the Penal Code carries up to 10 years in jail upon conviction.
In mitigation, lawyers Dominic Chew and Ariel Dasan requested leniency, saying, among other things, that the accused is a retiree.
In order to supplement his income and care for his son, who is physically and mentally challenged, the accused worked as an office assistant in Sandakan, earning between RM2,100 and RM2,300.
Chew said the accused’s role in this case was merely minuscule and everything the accused did was under the echelon of the organised crime.
“The accused’s regret in this whole case was being naive to be duped by his very own peers – to be used by the organised crime in furtherance of their clandestine activities,” said Chew.
The prosecution sought a deterrent sentence, citing public interest and the seriousness of the offence.
Mazlani was one of the 10 accused persons charged with the original charge under Section 130V(1) of the Penal Code, which carries up to 20 years in jail, for being members of an organised crime group on Nov 7, 2024.
Altogether, eight were jailed after pleading guilty to an alternative charge, while one woman was discharged and acquitted yesterday on the original charge.
Another accused, Irene Chin Nyuk Thien, will continue her trial on Feb 10, 2026, also on the original charge.
Deputy public prosecutor (DPP) Mohd Ashrof Adrin Kamarul and Yazid Mustaqim Roslan conducted the prosecution.
