KUALA LUMPUR • A kayak instructor has been jailed for six years by the High Court after he pleaded guilty to a charge of managing the assets of a terrorist, Muhammad Wanndy Mohamed Jedi.

Judicial Commissioner Abdul Karim Abdul Rahman passed the sentence on Mohamad Jazrin Mohamad Azaha, 23, and ordered it to run from the date of his arrest on May 18 last year.

In passing the sentence on Tuesday, Datuk Abdul Karim said that although Jazrin had unintentionally managed the asset, it was still a serious offence as it had helped in terrorist activities.

"Your actions allowed Wanndy to use your account; this is what is known as managing terrorist assets. Your actions could encourage terrorists to continue their violent activities. This offence is serious and should be punished with a jail sentence," he said.

Jazrin had allowed funds totalling RM1,990 (S$630) to be deposited in an account at RHB Bank in Gopeng town, Perak, between Jan 30 and Feb 6 last year.

Wanndy, a Malaysian, is high on the police's most-wanted list. The 27-year-old is believed to be in the Middle East, fighting with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, and has been active in recruiting other Malaysians.

Jazrin, who appeared calm during sentencing, was charged under a section of the Penal Code that could have seen him sentenced for up to 20 years and have his assets stripped.

He became acquainted with Wanndy in 2015 on Facebook, using the name Abu Jazrin/Mohamad Jazrin. They then connected through the WhatsApp application on cellphones.

In the middle of January last year, the kayak instructor agreed to Wanndy's request that his bank account be used to keep donation money.

Jazrin then accepted several deposits of funds, and in February last year deposited RM2,000 in an individual Public Bank account under the name of Gulam Aman, after receiving a message from Wanndy.

BERNAMA