KOTA KINABALU, April 18 — The Magistrate’s Court here sentenced a 37-year-old man, who used a forged payslip as genuine to purchase electrical items on instalment, to nine months in jail.

Magistrate Wan Farrah Farriza Wan Ghazali meted out the sentence to Nikolaus Owin Yohanes Laba after he pleaded guilty to dishonestly using a payslip in his name purportedly issued by an auto accessories company, knowing it to be false, on July 3, 2023, at 12.54pm, at Kwang Woon Trading Sdn Bhd in Taman Indah Permai, Manggatal.

The offence under Section 471 of the Penal Code, punishable under Section 465 of the same Code, carries a jail term of up to two years or fine, or both, on conviction.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Akaash Singh informed the court that Nikolaus had purchased a television and an air-conditioner on instalment from a shop, using the payslip as supporting documentation.

The items were delivered to him on the same day.

However, the following day, the company was alerted that the payslip and employment details were suspicious.

Checks revealed that Nikolaus had never been employed by the company stated in the document.

Attempts to recover the items failed as Nikolaus could not be contacted, resulting in losses amounting to RM6,568.

Investigations further revealed that Nikolaus had submitted a payslip in his own name purportedly issued by the said auto accessories company, despite never having been employed there, to facilitate the instalment purchase of the television and air-conditioner.

In another case, a 32-year-old man was jailed eight months for assisting to conceal stolen property.

Jasmin Suaib pleaded guilty before Magistrate Marilyn Kelvin to intentionally assisting to conceal a stolen Proton Saga tyre with a 14-inch rim at a roadside bush area in Kampung Likas, here, on April 5, this year, at 2pm.

The offence under Section 414 of the Penal Code carries a jail term of between six months and seven months and liability of a fine, on conviction.

The court heard Inspector Yusdi Basri, who prosecuted, that the item had earlier been reported missing from a locked store at a house in Kampung Muhibbah, Likas, on March 28.

Acting on information, police arrested Jasmin later that night and recovered the stolen item hidden in a bush.

Investigations established that Jasmin had knowingly concealed the stolen property. — Daily Express