Crime & Courts

Friends charged over falsifying letters for Melaka awards

MELAKA: Two friends were brought before the Ayer Keroh magistrate's court today on separate charges of using and falsifying approval letters related to awards from the Melaka government last month.

While Mohd Nizam Abdul Ghani, 46, pleaded guilty to three charges, 45-year-old Shahrizan Sahauddin, who faced a single charge, claimed trial.

According to the charges, Nizam was accused of three offences, namely using an approval letter for the Darjah Pangkuan Seri Melaka (DPSM) in the names of three people — Izhar Abd Kahar, Choong Seang Hai and Kathar Ismail Mohamed Hanifah.

All the offences were allegedly committed at a house in Jalan Matahari 7, Taman Paya Rumput Perdana, in the Melaka Tengah district, on Sept 21 at 11.06pm.

Nizam, represented by lawyer Kent Tan Chow Teng, was charged under Section 471 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 468 of the same code, which, upon conviction, carries a maximum sentence of seven years' imprisonment and a fine.

Following his guilty plea, deputy public prosecutor Hanis Aliah Ahmad Kamarulnajuib requested a new mention date to prepare the facts of the case and sentencing, while suggesting bail of RM30,000 for all charges.

Tan appealed for a reduced bail, citing that the accused works in a village in Kulim, Kedah, with an unstable income and supports a wife, four children, his 80-year-old infirm mother, and a 60-year-old father-in-law.

The court allowed bail at RM7,000 for all charges with one surety and set Dec 4 for the presentation of case facts and sentencing for Nizam.

Meanwhile, Shahrizan faces a charge of falsifying an approval letter for the DPSM award in the names of the same three individuals, at the same location, time, and date.

For this offence, he was charged under Section 465 of the Penal Code, which provides for a prison sentence of up to two years, a fine, or both, upon conviction.

Hanis Aliah proposed bail of RM10,000, but lawyer Helmi Hasan appealed on the grounds that his client works at a cargo company with a monthly income of RM2,950 and supports his wife, three children, and his mother who lives with them in Seremban.

He added that the accused had been detained since Oct 21 and had fully cooperated with police in the investigation.

The court allowed the accused to be released on RM4,000 bail with one surety and set Dec 12 for further mention of the case and submission of documents.

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