KUCHING: The Sessions’ Court here sentenced two friends to eight years in jail and three lashes of the rotan each for committing armed robbery at an eatery on Nov 23.
Judge Afidah Abdul Rahman meted out the sentence against the two accused Mohd Ariffin Efendi, 21, and Donavan Elison Impin, 26, after they pleaded guilty to a charge under Section 395 of the Penal Code read together with Section 397 of the same Code.
If convicted, the accused can be sentenced to a jail term of up to 20 years and be subject to whipping of the rotan.
According to the charges, the two accused committed gang robbery using a knife against a worker at Jalan Setia Raja around 4am.
They took a smartphone and cash amounting to RM971 which belonged to the eatery before escaping in a getaway car.
According to the facts of the case, the victim was called by the accused who pretended to be customers at the eatery to come to their table.
Later, one of them grabbed the victim’s bag while holding him at knife point. The estimated loss incurred on the victim is around RM1,300.
A police report lodged for further action, led to the arrest of the two accused at separate places on Nov 25.
The victim managed to identify the two accused who had committed the robbery.
In addition, CCTV footage at the scene also helped to determine the perpetrators as the clothes seized are the same as in the footage.
Also seized was a black Perodua Bezza belonging to the father of one of the accused, which was used during the crime.
Deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Aiman Mutallib Mohamad Shariff requested that the court impose a heavier sentence on the two accused as it is necessary to take into account the public interest and social security.
Meanwhile, the two accused were unrepresented by counsels.
