TWO MEN CHARGED WITH MISCHIEF BY FIRE, MOLOTOV COCKTAILS

IPOH, May 2 (Bernama) -- Two men were charged at separate Sessions Courts here today with five counts of mischief by fire and throwing Molotov cocktails at several residential properties between March and April this year.

Deliveryman Kok Wan Liang, 37, pleaded guilty to all charges while Taiwanese national Lin Jia He, 25, entered a not guilty plea after the charges were read in Mandarin.

Under the first two charges, both men were jointly accused of committing mischief by throwing petrol-filled glass bottles and Molotov cocktails at two homes in Taman Bandar Baru, Kampar and Kampung Baru Kuala Kuang, Kinta during the early hours of April 10, while Lin faces an additional charge for a similar alleged offence at the same location on March 25.

The charges are all under Section 436 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence and possible fines.

Judge Ainul Shahrin Mohamad granted bail of RM5,000 for each of the accused per charge, with a Malaysian citizen as surety.

In a separate hearing before Judge Azizah Ahmad, the two men faced three additional charges under Section 436 of the Penal Code and Section 29(1) of the Animal Welfare Act 2015 for similar offences against two other residences that resulted in injuries to a Rottweiler.

These offences alleged occurred between 3 pm to 12.30 am from April 2 to 8 in Panorama Lapangan Perdana and Taman Bandar Baru. The charges include violations of both the Penal Code and Animal Welfare Act.

Judge Ahmad denied bail to Kok, who pleaded guilty to all charges, while setting bail at RM5,000 per charge for Lin with the condition that he surrender his passport.

Deputy public prosecutors S Vitthiyeswary and N M Moganaraj Mithra led the prosecution, with lawyer R R Segaran representing Lin, while Kok was unrepresented.

The court scheduled July 23 for case mention and document submission.

-- BERNAMA