There can be no denying the hardships that many families, especially those living on the poverty line or under it, have had to face in light of the effects brought on by the Covid-19 global pandemic. With businesses closing, scarce employment opportunities and increased cost of living, some have had to resort to drastic measures in order to just get by.
M’sian father of six receives 5 month jail sentence for stealing groceries
According to local newspaper The New Straits Times, 35-year-old Rozzaimi Yunnus has been sentenced to a period of five months in jail by the Magistrate’s Court after he was found guilty of shoplifting from a local supermarket. The offense was committed on December 22nd last year at Wawasan Plaza in Kota Kinabalu.
At the time, he was found to have been behaving suspiciously before being held up by a few of the supermarket’s security guards as he was about to leave the premises. Upon being asked to show his receipt as proof of payment for his items, he failed to do so.
Items that he had pilfered from the supermarket shelves included two bags of rice weighing five kilograms each, as well as 30 other grocery essentials that totalled up to RM664.70.
Claims he wanted to feed his family
He was charged under Section 380 of the Penal Code for theft, which upon conviction can carry a jail term of up to 10 years as well as a fine. Rozzaimi, who was not represented in court, pleaded for a more lenient sentence during mitigation as this was his first-ever offense and that he was the sole breadwinner for his family.
His wife is not employed, and they have six children in total. He claims that he had stolen the groceries as he needed to feed his family. Inspector Kelvan Elson Maik asked that the court hand down an appropriate sentence to Rozzaimi, and that the stolen items be returned to their rightful owner.
The accused has since been sentenced to five months in jail by magistrate Lovely Natasha Charles.
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Also read: M’sian mother of 4 jailed for 14 months after stealing two packets of MILO worth RM73 in Terengganu
