MUAR: A labourer, who had just completed a prison sentence related to a drug case, once again finds himself behind bars after pleading guilty in the magistrate's court here today to charges of strangling his wife last week.
The accused, Chin Tong Choi, 44, faced two charges including testing positive for drugs in his urine, and was sentenced to 17 months in prison for both charges after confessing before Magistrate Fatin Dalilah Khalid.
According to the charges, the father of three was accused of intentionally causing injury to his 42-year-old wife in an incident at a house in Taman Arosa, Jalan Bakri, here, at 12.50pm on February 7.
Following that, the accused was charged with an offense punishable under Section 323 of the Penal Code and read together with Section 326A of the same code.
Section 323 provides for a prison sentence not exceeding one year or a fine not exceeding RM2,000 or both.
Meanwhile, Section 326A stipulates that a person shall be liable to a term of imprisonment twice the maximum period imposed for a conviction for an offense under the relevant section.
In addition, the accused was also charged under Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 and could be punished under Section 15(1) read together with Section 39B of the same act, for using methamphetamine and amphetamine.
Based on the facts of the case, the accused and his wife were arguing over claims that she had another man. It escalated when the accused lost control and strangled her, prompting the victim to file a report at the Muar police station.
The incident resulted in the victim receiving treatment at Sultanah Fatimah Specialist Hospital here, and she was confirmed to have suffered injuries to her neck.
The prosecution was conducted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohammad Ariff Marzuki while the accused was represented by Sakinah Suhaimi from the National Legal Aid Foundation (YBGK).
After taking into account the accused's guilty plea as well as the arguments from both the prosecution and defence sides, the court imposed an 11-month prison sentence for causing injury to his wife.
For Section 15(1)(a), the court sentenced him to six months in prison and two years of police supervision.
The court also decided that the prison sentences for both charges would run concurrently starting from the date of the accused's detention, February 12. This means the accused only needs to serve an 11-month prison sentence.