KUANTAN:A self-employed man was fined RM9,000 by the Sessions Court here today after he pleaded guilty to shooting a monkey which was trapped in a cage before spray painting the animal in April this year.

Judge Siti Aminah Ghazali also ordered the accused, Rozaman Ismail @ Osman, 42, to serve two months in jail if he failed to pay the fine.

Rozaman was accused of committing the offence at 3 pm on April 17, this year, at a house in Kempadang Utama, Astaka Village here, and charged under Section 86 (1) (f) of the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 which provides for a maximum fine of RM50,000 or imprisonment for up to a year, or both, if convicted.

Earlier, Rozaman, who was not represented, appealed for leniency on the grounds that he, as the sole breadwinner for his family, needed to support his wife and two children.

Prosecuting officer from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) Ahmad Ikhwan Zainuddin, however, pressed for a just sentence to serve as a lesson.

According to the facts of the case, the accused was the individual featured in a video which went viral on social media in April, showing a man abusing a monkey in a cage.

The animal had earlier entered the trap set by the Perhilitan following complaints by the residents of monkeys wreaking havoc in the housing area.

The accused paid the fine.

-- BERNAMA