After entering guilty pleas to trespassing into Malaysian waters, three Indonesian skippers were each fined RM1 million at the Sessions Court in this city yesterday.
Judges Afidah Abdul Rahman and Musli Ab Hamid imposed six-month jail sentences on Sutas Rif and Kadrino, respectively, for nonpayment of the fine. Six crew members, ranging in age from 22 to 43, were also fined yesterday in addition to the skippers. Judge Afidah fined Arfandi and Habibi RM 100,000 apiece, with six months in jail as default.
Judge Musli ordered Meri Sugianto and Yoga Purnama to each pay RM100,000 in default of four months in jail, while Judge Iris fined M Riz and Midi RM200,000 each in default of five months in jail.
In the meantime, Dedi Yanto was given a seven-month jail sentence by Judge Iris Awen Jon in case he didn’t pay the fine.
The charge sheet states that each of the accused failed to notify an authorized officer in English or Bahasa Malaysia by radio, telex, or facsimile about their identity, whereabouts, and intended destination, as well as the kinds and quantity of fish their vessels were carrying and the circumstances surrounding their entry into Malaysian waters.
On November 14 of this year, between 6.45 am and 9 pm, they committed the offense in three different boats between 98.6, 99.2, and 101.7 nautical miles off Tanjung Payong, Sarawak.
The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) team identified the boats, stopped them, and took the skippers and crew into custody based on the evidence.
The Department of Fisheries Malaysia also confirmed that the vessels had failed to notify any authorised officer of them entering the Malaysian waters, which was in contravention of Section 16(3) of the Fisheries Act 1985.
The prosecution of the cases was conducted by DPP Muhamad Azham Marwan, while all the accused were unrepresented by any legal counsel
Afterwards, the boats were seized along with a variety of gear and apparatus, including GPS units, and a roughly 90 kg catch.
