KUCHING, Dec 18 — A 49-year-old local man was charged at the Magistrate’s Court here yesterday with cheating three persons in a bogus land deal last year.
No confession was recorded from the accused, Ram Kipriwi, as soon as the charges under Section 420 of the Penal Code were read out to him through a court interpreter.
The section provides for imprisonment of not less than one year and not more than 10 years, and whipping and/or a fine upon conviction.
Kuching Court registrar Morni Litar Mokhtar and Kuching Lower Court assistant registrar Sataia Kombi, who presided over the case as magistrate, set December 22 for case re-mention and allowed Ram to be released on bail of RM4,500 with two sureties.
For the charges, Ram was accused of dishonestly inducing Hasanah Abu Bakar, 51-year-old in Kampung Pasir Pandak to pay a deposit of RM600 for a piece of land on September 2, 2019.
He was also charged with dishonestly inducing Mujaahidin Kalek, 27, to pay a deposit of RM452 on October 5,2019 at the same village.
The third charge was for dishonestly inducing Rohaidawati Sabri, 37 years old, at a restaurant in Jalan Demak on October 7, 2019 to pay a deposit of RM1,512 to him.
Meanwhile, according to earlier news reports, the accused had offered to sell to the three victims a non-existent piece of land in Santubong.
The victims were also told to pay the deposit and the process would not require them to submit any purchasing documents.
All three victims who paid the deposit to the accused did not obtain the said land this year which led them to lodge a police report.
ASP Hisyam Junaidi, Inspector Merylene Lindan Andrew Mang and Inspector Nur Syafiqa Nyaie Ilin prosecuted separately in the case.
The accused was represented by counsel Roland Eizlan Shah Thomas Tudin. — Borneo Post Online
