THAI WOMAN FINED RM9,000 FOR HAVING PACKET COOKING OIL WITHOUT PERMIT

KANGAR, Dec 26  (Bernama) -- A Thai woman was fined RM9,000 by the Sessions Court here today after pleading guilty to a charge of possessing 34 kilogrammes of subsidised packet cooking oil without a license.

Judge Sharifah Norazlita Syed Salim Idid meted out the fine, in default five months in jail, on  Salmee Changwang, 49, who is a grab driver, after she pleaded guilty to the charge.

She was charged with possession of the controlled item, comprising 34 packets of 1kg subsidised cooking oil in a Toyota Hilux Revo pickup vehicle without a permit at Jalan Kaki Bukit-Wang Kelian at 4.30 on Dec 19 last year.

In doing so, she had violated Regulation 3(1) of the Supply Control Regulations 1974, which states that no person can deal in or manufacture any scheduled article by wholesale or retail without a license. The license is issued by the Controller of Supplies under Regulation 4. 

The woman was charged under Section 21 of the Control of Supplies Act 1961 and Regulation 21(1) of the Supply Control Regulations 1974 and can be punished under Section 22(1) of the same act.

In the same court, lorry driver Haw Boon Guey, 58, pleaded guilty to a charge of possessing 400 litres of petrol and diesel mixture without a license in June last year.

Judge Sharifah Norazlita fined him RM20,000, in default eight months in jail, for the offence.

Haw was charged with committing the offence at a roadside on Jalan Kaki Bukit near a petrol station in Beseri at 10.30 am on June 21 last year.

Salmee and Haw, both unrepresented, paid the fine.

The prosecution of both cases was conducted by the prosecuting officer from the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN) in Perlis,  S. Mugunthan.

-- BERNAMA