Vietnamese skipper jailed, fined for bribery

KUANTAN: The sessions court here today fined a Vietnamese skipper RM10,000 and sentenced him to a month in jail after he pleaded guilty to offering a RM20,000 bribe to a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) officer last month.
Judge Mohd Ghazali Mohamad Taib also ordered Lam Ngoan, 42, to serve a month in prison in default of the fine.
Lam Ngoan was charged with offering the bribe to Maritime Lieutenant Commander Mahadi Ismail as an inducement for the MMEA officer to not take action against him and the boat crew for fishing without licence.
The offence was committed about 100 nautical miles off Kuantan at 9.50am on May 3.
The charge, under Section 214 of the Penal Code, carries a jail term of up to six months and a fine or both, upon conviction.
Prosecution was conducted by deputy public prosecutor from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency Kamariah Seman while Lam Ngoan was represented by counsel Mohd Suhaimi Ismail. — Bernama