Vivian Lee, the former girlfriend of controversial blogger Alvin Tan, was sentenced to five months and 22 days jail by the Sessions Court here today for insulting the Muslims by making an offensive posting on their Facebook.
Judge Abdul Rashid Daud handed down the sentence on Vivian Lee, or Lee May Ling, 27, after finding that the prosecution had succeeded in proving the case against her.
He ordered the woman to serve the sentence today.
Abdul Rashid had initially sentenced Lee to six months' jail, but reduced it by eight days after her lawyer, Chong Joo Tian, requested the sentence to take into account the number of days she was on remand.
Abdul Rashid also allowed a stay of the sentence pending an appeal at the High Court, and increased Lee's bail from RM10,000 to RM20,000 in one surety. Lee was also ordered to surrender her passport to the court.
In the judgment, Abdul Rashid said Lee was a knowledgeable and educated person and should be able to consider the sensitivity of the Muslims before posting a picture of her and Alvin Tan with a caption "Selamat Berbuka Puasa (with Bak Kut Teh...fragrant, delicious and appetising)" on their Facebook.
"The court agrees with the prosecution's submission that the action by the accused is damaging, although the accused had apologised.
"After hearing and studying all the evidence and submission by both parties, the court finds the accused guilty and is convicted of the charge," he added.
Earlier, Chong had requested for his client to be placed on a good behaviour bond on grounds that the offence committed by her did not involve violence or cause injury.
The accused was not involved in committing the act and it is appropriate for the court to give her a second chance as she regretted what she did, he added.
Deputy public prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin, who prosecuted, requested that the accused be jailed for between 20 and 24 months as the offence was serious and involved public interest.
Lee and Tan were jointly charged with committing the offence at 9 am on July 13, 2013.
The offence, under Section 4(1)(c) of the Sedition Act 1948, provides a fine of RM5,000, or three months imprisonment, or both, if found guilty.
Meanwhile, Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin, when met outside the court, said the prosecution against Tan would continue although Tan was no longer in the country.
As such, he urged the police to expedite the process of bringing Tan, whose full name is Tan Jye Yee, back to Malaysia for the trial.
Bernama
Fri May 27 2016
Judge Abdul Rashid Daud handed down the sentence on Vivian Lee, or Lee May Ling, 27 (pix), after finding that the prosecution had succeeded in proving the case against her. -Filepix
Bio-Home lancar stesen pengisian semula eco, yang pertama seumpamanya
Jenama pembersihan rumah mesra alam dari Lam Soon, Bio-Home, melancarkan stesen pengisian semula eco pertama, menandakan langkah penting komitmen dalam menangani isu sisa plastik.
Anwar beri penghormatan terakhir kepada mendiang Joseph Kurup
Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim hari ini memberi penghormatan terakhir kepada mendiang Tan Sri Joseph Kurup di Wisma Fook Lu Siew di Kota Kinabalu.
Penghantar makanan, kanak-kanak dua tahun maut nahas jalan raya
Seorang wanita dan anaknya yang berusia dua tahun maut dalam nahas jalan raya membabitkan dua kenderaan di Kilometer 10.2 Jalan Batu Caves menghala ke Selayang, malam Jumaat.
Microsoft uji VASA, watak AI untuk panggilan video bebas kamera web
Microsoft Research memperlihatkan VASA iaitu sistem AI yang boleh menjana wajah manusia yang hiper-realistik berserta dengan emosi pada wajah.
Malaysia, Thailand tingkatkan kerjasama perangi jenayah rentas sempadan
Kerjasama itu telah dibincangkan ketika mesyuarat dua hala beliau dengan Timbalan Perdana Menteri merangkap Menteri Dalam Negeri Thailand Anutin Charnvirakul pada Khamis.
YouTube uji ciri 'tanya AI' untuk rumuskan video
Apabila butang Ask ditekan, beberapa dialog diberikan oleh chatbot dengan gambar profil seakan ikon Gemini.
Usaha cari bakat baharu golongan Orang Asli, luar bandar perlu dipergiat - Hannah
Kementerian Belia dan Sukan tidak sesekali akan meminggirkan kanak-kanak Orang Asli dan luar bandar dalam menyediakan peluang dan akses untuk bersukan.
Lelaki bakar diri di luar mahkamah perbicaraan Trump meninggal dunia
Maxwell Azzarello didakwa menuang cecair mudah terbakar pada tubuhnya sebelum melemparkan risalah teori konspirasi ke udara.
PKR Sabah minta PM tumpu ikhtiar noktah kemiskinan tegar, isu dokumentasi
Tumpuan kepada ikhtiar menoktahkan kemiskinan tegar dan isu dokumentasi rakyat antara tiga cadangan khusus diutarakan Majlis Pimpinan Negeri (MPN) PKR Sabah kepada Perdana Menteri.
Harga jualan maksimum benih padi sah program IBPS RM54, RM58
Harga jualan maksimum benih padi sah CL220 bagi program Insentif Benih Padi Sah (IBPS) ditetapkan pada kadar RM54 di peringkat pemborong dan RM58 di peringkat peruncit berkuat kuasa 15 April.
Chegubard, Adam Adli dan Muhammad Safwan diperintah bela diri
Hakim Abdul Rashid Daud membuat keputusan itu selepas mendapati pihak pendakwaan berjaya membuktikan kes prima facie terhadap mereka setelah mendengar keterangan daripada 18 saksi pendakwaan.
Mahkamah lucut hak jaminan sebanyak RM20,000 terhadap Alvin Tan
Mahkamah Sesyen hari ini melucutkan hak jaminan sebanyak RM20,000 terhadap blogger kontroversi Alvin Tan kerana gagal hadir ke mahkamah.