Kota Kinabalu: A 49-year-old man was jailed seven months by the Magistrate’s Court here on Tuesday for stealing four gas cylinders.
Phua Ming Kiong pleaded guilty before Magistrate Dzul Elmy Yunus to stealing the cylinders belonging to Boo Jia Qi at the rear of a restaurant in Penampang Baru, Penampang, at 2.50am on Feb 22.
The court heard from the prosecution that restaurant staff discovered the cylinders missing from a locked area at the back of the premises around 9.30am that day.
CCTV footage showed Phua cutting the padlock and loading the cylinders into a car, resulting in a total loss of RM800.
Acting on information, police arrested Phua on March 6 in Sandakan, and the gas cylinders were later recovered at a mini-market in Kg Kobusak, Penampang, on March 7, following directions provided by Phua, the prosecution said.
Unrepresented, Phua requested a lenient sentence, citing that he has children and health problems.
The prosecution pressed for a deterrent sentence. Phua was charged under Section 379 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum penalty of seven years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both.
In a separate case, a 34-year-old labourer, Almunir Talib, was also jailed seven months for possessing stolen property.
Almunir pleaded guilty to keeping a stolen MacBook and a black-and-pink Adidas sling bag belonging to an ice cream and beverage shop at a house in Kg Lembaga Padi, Inanam, at 8.30am on Feb 28.
The prosecution told the court that the items were reported missing from the shop’s office on Feb 27.
Acting on information, police arrested Almunir at the Inanam house the next day and recovered the stolen items.
The charge, under Section 411 of the Penal Code, carries a jail term of up to five years, a fine, or both, on conviction.
Inspector Mohamad Hamidi Mohamad Hamzah prosecuted.
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