ALOR STAR: The sessions court here today fined a Sungai Petani-based recycling company manager RM70,000 for harbouring 14 illegal immigrants.
Judge Najwa Che Mat passed down the sentence after the accused, Tan See Wee, 37, pleaded guilty to the charge with harbouring nine Bangladesh and five Chinese nationals at the factory.
Tan was charged under Section 6(1)(c) and Section 15(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 (Act 155) which carries up to RM30,000 fine or up to one year jail for each of the illegal immigrant that he had harboured.
He committed the offence at Green Mark Technology Group Sdn Bhd, Lot 96 & 97, Bakar Arang Industrial Area in Sungai Petani, about 10.35am on Oct 3.
Tan was detained during the Immigration Department's Ops Mega for harbouring the illegal migrant workers.
He had committed the offence for harbouring nine Bangladesh nationals Esrail Hossen Biswas, 43, Dalim Miah, 29, Shakil,32, Amran Abdul Razzak, 43, Sahin, 23, Maidul Islam, 28, Md Farid, 26, Anwar,28, and Kawsar, 25.
The other illegal immigrants were four Chinese women Li Shuffen, 49, Yuan Chunxia, 52, Wang Xiangmei, 49, and Wang Yu Xia, 49, and also 50-year-old Chinese man Qi Faqiang.
The prosecution was carried by state Immigration Department Prosecution Officers Adilah Ibrahim and Hanisah Omar.
In mitigation, lawyer Mohd Fadhly Yaacob who represented the accused appealed the court to impose a minimum fine to his client.
"This is his first offence and he had saved the court time by pleading guilty to the charge.
"My client earns RM10,000 monthly and has two children to support," he said.
The court subsequently fined the accused RM5,000 or in lieu of four months' imprisonment for each of the illegal worker he had harboured.
Tan later raised RM70,000 to pay the fine.