Appeals court maintains sentence on three Indonesians

PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeals today maintained the three-year jail sentence imposed on three Indonesian nationals who pleaded guilty to ferrying 54 countrymen, among them three children, to Malaysia from Indonesia in an unlicensed boat.
Judge Datuk Wira Mohtarudin Baki, who headed a panel of three judges, maintained the punishment meted out by the Shah Alam High Court against Harianto, 43, Ramlan, 41, and Sijul, 38, after dismissing the appeal by the prosecution to enhance the sentence.
"We are unanimous in our decision. We find that the appeal of the prosecution does not have merit. The appeal is dismissed. The decision of the High Court is maintained," said Judge Mohtarudin who presided with judges Datuk Seri Zakaria Sam and Datuk Abdul Karim Abdul Jalil.
Harianto, who was the skipper of the boat, was charged with crew Ramlan and Sijul. They had transported the migrants and smuggled them into the waters of Sekinchan, Sabak Bernam, Selangor, at 1am on March 21, 2016.
They were charged under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 which provides for a maximum five-year jail sentence and a fine of up to RM250,000, or both.
On Jan 27, 2017, the High Court imposed the sentence on the three men after they pleaded guilty to the charge and ordered the sentences to start from the date of their arrest on March 21, 2016.
Earlier, Deputy Public Prosecutor Aslinda Ahad argued that the penalty meted out by the High Court was manifestly inadequate because it was a serious offence of transporting 54 migrants in a small boat which endangered their lives.
"I concede there was no violent offence in this case, but transporting 54 migrants in a small boat without a licence and travelling at night could have resulted in the loss of lives if the boat sank," she said.
The three accused, who were not represented at their appeal, asked that the penalty be maintained because they had dependents in Indonesia.
Judge Mohtarudin said their offence was serious and endangered the lives of the migrants.
"In many cases, boats sank and the victims died; the government had to look for the bodies and much money was expended," said the judge. One of the men apologised to the court for their offence. — Bernama