JOHOR BARU, Feb 14 — Four men were charged at the Magistrate’s Court today with causing the death of a 24-year-old entertainment outlet worker in the city centre here earlier this month.
The accused Poh Kien Huat, 28, Mohamad Ashiq Othman, 31, Wong Sew Hau, 48, and Lim Wee Huang, 32, nodded when the charges were read to them in Bahasa Malaysia before Magistrate Hidayatul Syuhada Shamsudin.
However, no plea was entered during today’s proceedings.
Based on the charge sheet, the four were charged with causing the death of Hah Chun Fail, 24, at an office on the third floor of Route 66 Club at Plaza DNP on Jalan Abdullah Tahir here at 11.15am on February 4.
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The accused were charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code with murder which was read together with Section 34 of the same Code.
The Section carries a sentence of death by hanging or imprisonment for up to 40 years and if not given the death penalty, the accused will be subjected to 12 lashes, if convicted.
Deputy Public Prosecutor R. Nevina prosecuted, while the four accused were represented by lawyer Chuah Shyue Chien.
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Hidayatul Syuhada did not grant bail and set March 21 for mention and submission of documents.
In a separate court, Poh and two other men, Loh Kah Chye, 29, and Lau Ngie Fong, 37, were charged with confining the victim in a room on the first floor of Pub De Calvary on Jalan Sutera Tanjung 8/2 in Taman Sutera Utama here from 2am until 2.20am on the same day.
All three pleaded not guilty after the charges were read to them by a court interpreter in Bahasa Malaysia before Magistrate R. Salini.
The charge was framed under Section 342 of the Penal Code for wrongful confinement and read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code which provides for a maximum prison sentence of a year or a fine of up to RM2,000 or both, if convicted.
Earlier, Deputy Public Prosecutor Nur Ameerah Allaudeen proposed a bail amount of RM50,000 each.
However, Chuah, who represented Loh and Lau, applied for a lower bail amount on the grounds that his clients were supporting their ailing mother.
The court then fixed bail at RM6,000 with one surety for each of the accused.
Salini set March 21 for mention and submission of documents.
On February 4, it was reported that the police received information on a murder involving a 24-year-old man at an entertainment outlet on Jalan Abdullah Tahir here.
Following the report, a total of 15 men, between the ages of 20 and 40, were arrested at separate locations to assist investigations.
On February 5, one of the suspects was arrested by police upon arrival at Senai International Airport after he was extradited by Thai authorities from Bangkok, Thailand.
The 28-year-old suspect, who speaks fluent Thai, had earlier fled Malaysia after allegedly assaulting his employee, who is believed to have stolen RM40,000 from him and used the stolen funds to gamble online. The 24-year-old employee later died.