KANGAR: A pasar malam trader pleaded not guilty at a Sessions Court here today on a charge of arson involving the official vehicle of Perlis Mufti Datuk Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin in March.
Mohd Azimar Abd Razak, 36, made the plea after the charge was read to him before judge Ainul Shahrin Mohamad.
The accused was charged, together with another suspect who’s still at large, with setting fire on a Honda Accord belonging to the state government with intention to cause damage at Jalan Persiaran Wawasan here at 5am on March 22.
He was charged under Section 435 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34 of the same Code which carries a maximum jail term of 14 years and fine, if convicted.
Deputy public prosecutor Norsyuhada Mohd Yatim did not offer bail for the accused as the case involved public interest and government property.
She also told the court that offering bail might lead to the same incident to happen again after the case went viral on social media.
National Legal Aid Foundation attorney Najidah Romli, who represented the accused, however asked for her client to be offered bail.
She said Mohd Azimar has two children aged 9 and 11, as well as a stroke-stricken 46-year-old sister under his care.
Ainul Shahrin then offered RM8,000 bail in one surety and set July 2 for the case re-mention.
The judge also ordered for the accused to stay away from the victim, his family members or his close friends, as well as to report himself to the investigating officer on the 1st of every month.
On March 22, Mohd Asri’s official car was burnt by two men who were detected in a closed circuit television (CCTV) recording in his neighbour’s house in Jalan Persiaran Wawasan here.
In the incident at 5.45am, a black Honda Accord car was burnt in the engine and left front tyre while the front and back windscreens were smashed.