KUALA LUMPUR: A Nigerian man pleaded guilty at the Sessions Court here today to deceiving a real estate company manager into investing in a marine product supply project amounting to more than RM300,000.
Innocent Uchechukwu Christian, 27, made the plea after the charge was read out by an interpreter in English before Judge Hasbullah Adam who set Dec 31 for sentencing and hearing the facts of the case.
Meanwhile, his fiancé, M.Suvitha, 38, pleaded not guilty to the same charge.
The man, along with Suvitha, was charged with cheating a 52-year-old woman by tricking her into investing in a marine product supply project until the victim transferred a total of RM339,610 into 11 different accounts. The victim would not have handed over the money if she had not been so deceived.
The offence was allegedly committed at a restaurant in Jalan Ipoh here. The offence under Section 420 of the Penal Code read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code provides imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one year and not more than ten years and with whipping, and shall also be liable for a fine, upon conviction.
Deputy public prosecutor Annur Atiqah Abd Hadi appeared for the prosecution while the two accused were represented by lawyer M. Tharuma Ratnam.
Annur Atiqah offered bail of RM10,000 with one surety for the woman while Tharuma Ratnam applied for a minimum bail as his client was now seven months pregnant and needed to go to hospital for examinations.
“If my client fails to pay (bail) she has to be detained in jail in her pregnant state and she also has another seven-year-old child,” the lawyer said.
Hasbullah allowed the accused bail of RM5,000 with two sureties and fixed Jan 18, next year for remention.
In the same court in a different case, a managing director of a spare parts company, Tan Chey Lay pleaded not guilty to running a money lending business without a valid licence and giving a loan to Jason Lim Teng Tian, 48, amounting to RM215,000 with interest.
Tan, 44, allegedly committed the offence at a premises in Taman Niaga Waris here, between June 19, 2019 to June 21, 2019.
The offence committed under Section 5 (2) of the Moneylenders Act 1951, is liable to a fine of between RM 250,000 and RM 1 million, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or both, upon conviction.
The court allowed bail of RM25,000 with one surety and ordered him to surrender his passport to the court pending the disposal of his case.
The court fixed Feb 2, next year for remention and for the submission of documents. -Bernama
