Six individuals deny kidnapping Singaporean, abducting another during JB court trials
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They are accused of acting together in kidnapping a Singaporean man for the purpose of demanding a ransom and abducting a Singaporean woman with the intention of secretly and wrongfully confining her.
PHOTO: THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
JOHOR BAHRU – Six people, including a woman, claimed trial at the Sessions Court in Johor Bahru on Aug 21 to kidnapping a Singaporean man.
The accused, M. Balamurugan, 46; K. Saravanan, 40; G. Puganeswaran, 38; S. Gobinath, 38; Adwin Nicholas Xavier, 41; and P. Sri Devi, 41; pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to them before Judge Nor Aziati Jaafar.
According to the charge sheet, the accused had acted together in kidnapping the Singaporean for the purpose of demanding a ransom of $20,000.
They were accused of committing the offence in front of a church in Jalan Orkid 36, Taman Sri Orkid in Skudai, Johor, at about 2pm on Aug 8.
They were charged under Section 3 of the Kidnapping Act for kidnapping for ransom, which provides for a prison sentence of between 30 and 40 years and whipping upon conviction.
The case was handled by Deputy Public Prosecutor R. Nevina, who said that the accused should not be granted bail as the offence is non-bailable and serious.
However, lawyer K. Veeranesh, who was representing Sri Devi, asked for minimum bail as his client is a single mother with six children, including a one-year-old.
The five other accused, who were not represented, also asked for low bail, with each citing their respective dependants, including children aged between six months and 22 years.
The judge then set bail at RM50,000 (S$15,700) with two sureties for each of the accused.
Meanwhile, in a separate court, all six also pleaded not guilty before Magistrate A. Shaarmini to a charge under Section 365 of the Penal Code for abducting a Singaporean woman.
According to the charge sheet, the accused had acted together in abducting the woman with the intention of secretly and wrongfully confining her.
They were accused of committing the offence between Aug 8 and Aug 11 at an apartment in Jalan Aman, Taman Skudai Baru, as well as several locations around Johor Bahru.
The case was handled by Deputy Public Prosecutor Eizlan Azhar.
Sri Devi was represented by Veeranesh, while the rest were not represented by lawyers.
Shaarmini set bail at RM10,000 with two sureties for each of the accused.
In another court, Balamurugan, Saravanan and Gobinath also pleaded not guilty before Sessions Court Judge Madihah Zainol to a charge of committing gang robbery involving a gold necklace and a Rolex watch belonging to the Singaporean man.
They were accused of committing the offence inside a car in Johor Bahru at about 2pm on Aug 8.
They were charged under Section 395 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum jail term of 20 years and whipping upon conviction.
The case was handled by Nevina, while the three were not represented by lawyers. The court allowed bail at RM9,000 with one Malaysian surety each.
All three courts also imposed additional conditions that the accused do not interfere with the victims or prosecution witnesses, report to the nearest police station once a month and surrender their passports to the court, if any.
Meanwhile, in another court, Saravanan and Puganeswaran pleaded guilty to a charge under Section 324 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt to a Singaporean man with a weapon.
Magistrate Nurzihan Abdul Rehman sentenced them to a fine of RM3,000 each, in default six months’ jail.
According to the charge sheet, the duo committed the offence between 10am and 1pm on Aug 11 at an apartment in Jalan Aman, Taman Skudai Baru.
The case was handled by Deputy Public Prosecutor Nor Deana Aqilah Aliman, while the two were not represented. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
