Crime & Courts

Maskless man who caused a scene at nasi lemak stall charged

KUALA LUMPUR: The man who gained notoriety when a video clip of him allegedly berating people for asking him to put on a face mask at a nasi lemak stall went viral was hauled to court to face the music today.

J. Shyamalan, however, pleaded not guilty to insulting the modesty of Cherrilyn De Centino, 23, by using foul language, and violating the Movement Control Order (MCO) Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) by not wearing a face mask in a public place.

The charges were under Section 509 of the Penal Code and Regulation 17(1) of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Disease (Measures Within Infected Local Areas (Movement Control) Regulations 2021.

Shyamalan, the co-owner of a gym, is facing a maximum five years' imprisonment, a fine, or both upon conviction. He was accused of committing both offences at Kedai Sepetang, Jalan Desa Bakti, in Brickfields about 10.30am on July 18.

The 33-year-old, clad in a yellow shirt, was calm and nodded in understand when the charges were read to him before magistrate Wong Chai Sia.

An older woman, believed to be his aunt, arrived as early as 9am and sat in the public gallery as she waited for the hearing to begin. She just looked on silently as the court translator read out the charges against her nephew.

Deputy public prosecutor Wan Ahmad Hakimi Wan Ahmad Jaafar asked the court to impose RM10,000 bail against the accused.

However, counsel John Das pleaded for minimum bail, saying it was merely to ensure the attendance of his client in court.

"He needs to support his family and his business is deeply affected due to the current MCO," he said.

The court set RM4,000 bail with one surety and fixed Aug 24 for mention.

It is understood that Shyamalan's aunt posted bail for him.

Recently, a 29-second video of an incident at the nasi lemak stall went viral on social media shortly after it happened. In the video, a man was seen shouting obscenities and scolding the stall owner and a customer after he was reprimanded for not wearing a face mask.

The video was allegedly recorded by a bystander who provided a copy to the stall owner after the man left.

The man in the video is most noted for the phrase "you want to get whacked is it?".

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