KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 10 — A Nepalese man previously investigated for sodomising a cat was today fined RM40,000 by the Sessions Court in Shah Alam.

According to Berita Harian, Judge Nor Hasniah Ab Razak imposed the sentence after the 33-year-old, Arman Shah, pleaded guilty to cruelly mistreating a cat.

The court also ordered that Arman would serve 15 months in prison if he fails to pay the fine.

The former security guard was charged with cruelly mistreating a cat on the fourth floor of an apartment block in Kota Kemuning, Section 31, at 12.30am on November 15.

He was charged under Section 29(1)(a) of the Animal Welfare Act 2015, which carries a maximum penalty of three years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to RM100,000, or both upon conviction.

According to the facts of the case, a woman who had just arrived at the parking area and was in her car saw the accused holding a cat and pulling down his trousers before committing the act.

The woman asked her husband to intervene, and when he arrived upstairs, he also saw Arman naked.

After being confronted, Arman pulled up his trousers and threw the cat to the ground before entering his apartment. 

The woman in the car managed to record a 48-second video showing the accused holding and throwing the animal.

Arman is also currently serving a four-month prison sentence for indecent exposure and entering the country without valid documentation.