Two Friends Jailed For Getting Naked At A Surau In Johor
The duo pleaded guilty in court and were sentenced to jail.
By Aqasha Nur’aiman — 14 Nov 2023, 11:26 AM
On Monday, 13 November, two friends, a man and a woman, pleaded guilty in the Batu Pahat Magistrate's Court to committing gross indecency at a toll plaza surau near Yong Peng, Johor
According to Harian Metro, Lok Kah Hui, 25, and Yap Win Yin, 26, pleaded guilty after the charges were read together in Mandarin by an interpreter in front of Magistrate Suhaila Shafi'uddin.
Lok, a durian orchard caretaker, and Yap, an animal food shop worker, were accused of stripping each other at a men's surau near the Yong Peng toll plaza at 8.15am on Wednesday, November 8.
The duo were charged with the offence under Section 377D and Section 34 of the Penal Code, which carry a prison term of up to two years upon conviction.
The prosecution was led by deputy public prosecutor Farah Wahidah Mohd Sharip, while Lok was represented by Tan Song Yan. Yap was represented by National Legal Aid Foundation (YBGK) attorney Kamarul Arifin Nordin.
The prosecution argued that the court should impose a sentence commensurate with the severity of the offences committed by the accused
"Although both the accused pleaded guilty and saved court costs, it does not mean that their punishment is automatically reduced.
"The court must take into account the public's interest in the actions of the accused, which is gross indecency, and punishment must be imposed as a lesson to others," the judge said.
After considering the guilty pleas from both accused and weighing the arguments presented by the prosecution and defence, the court sentenced Lok to six months in prison and Yap to five months. The court also determined that the sentence would commence on 8 November, the date of the arrests for both accused.
