KUCHING: Three close friends were sentenced to jail and fined by the Magistrate’s Court yesterday for stealing women’s underwear from a clothing store at Tabuan Jaya here recently.
The accused individuals, Zaridah (37), Edthma (33), and Fransiska (28), all pleaded guilty to the charges presented before Magistrate Zaiton Anuar.
According to the charge, on June 14, at approximately 6.24 pm, the three defendants collectively stole one waist wrap, two pairs of maternity pants, one pair of panties, and one pair of shorts from a well-known clothing store in a shopping centre at Jalan Wan Alwi, Tabuan Jaya.
As a result, they were charged under Section 380 of the Penal Code, which carries a punishment of up to ten years of imprisonment and a fine. For second or subsequent offenses, whipping may also be imposed. The charge was read in conjunction with Section 34 of the same code.
Magistrate Zaiton sentenced Edthma and Dayang Zaridah to six days of imprisonment and a fine of RM2,000 or four months of imprisonment. Fransiska, an Indonesian citizen, was sentenced to four months of imprisonment, effective from the date of her arrest on June 14.
According to the case’s details, the complainant instructed her staff to inspect the situation after the RFID scanner beeped. Upon reviewing the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) footage, the complainant identified three unidentified women who had stolen multiple pieces of women’s underwear. The culprits were subsequently apprehended.
A police report was immediately filed, and the estimated loss from the incident was around RM400.
Inspector Merylene Lindan Andrew Mang conducted the prosecution, while the accused were not represented by lawyers.
