MELAKA: A senior citizen was sentenced to 10 years’ jail by the High Court today for possessing 304 grams of cannabis while his 24-year-old daughter was acquitted of the joint charge.
Although she was freed Chong Xiang Yi broke down in tears as her 62-year-old father, Othman Abdullah @ Chong Yong Sing was given a jail term.
Othman, who suffers from a stroke, pleaded guilty to an amended charge of possessing 304grammes of cannabis while his daughter pleaded not guilty to the same charge before Judicial Commissioner Siti Khadijah S. Hassan Badjenid.
The father-and-daughter, who were both unemployed, were initially charged with drug trafficking which a mandatory death sentence upon conviction.
They were charged with committing the offence at a house in Taman Merdeka Jaya, Batu Berendam here, about 1.15am on Aug 5 last year.
Othman also pleaded guilty to a separate charge of possessing 7.98grams of cannabis at the same time and place.
Counsel Leng Wie Mun, who represented the duo, urged the court to impose a lenient sentence as Othman was a first-time offender besides suffering from health problems.
“My client is 62-year-old and suffered a stroke in 2016. At his age and circumstances, he cannot cope with a heavy sentence.
“He is not a hardened criminal. He did not cause harm to anyone and is remorseful for his offence,” she said.
In mitigation for his daughter, Leng said she should be released as she was only working as a waitress in a boutique hotel with a monthly salary of RM1,500 and had since been unemployed since her arrest.
Deputy public prosecutor Effizah Ernie Idris urged the court to impose a deterrent sentence owing to the seriousness of the offence.
The prosecution applied to the court to withdraw the charge against Xiang Yi after taking into account her father’s guilty plea.
“I urged the court to consider the prevalence of drug offences affecting not just adults but also youths,” she said.
Siti Khadijah sentenced Othman to 10 years' jail for the first offence and three years' jail for the second offence, the sentences to run concurrently from his date of arrest on Aug 5, 2016.