IRANIAN LAWYER LANDS IN JAIL OVER BOTTLE OF LIQUOR

KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) - An Iranian lawyer was Friday sentenced one
day's jail and RM500 (US$1=RM3.03) fine by the magistrate's court here for
stealing one bottle of liquor.

Magistrate Siti Shakirah Mohtarudin passed the sentence on Ahmad Reza after
he pleaded guilty when the charge was read out by the court interpreter in
English.

Ahmad,29, was charged with stealing one bottle of Chabis worth RM95 at
Carrefour Hypermarket in Jalan 1/149B Sri Petaling here at 9pm on May 14, 2011.

The charge under Section 380 of Penal Code provides up to 10 years' jail and
a fine.

Earlier, counsel Wan A Fadzil Wan Omar pleaded with the court to pass a
lenient sentence on Ahmad.

"My client has a Bachelor's degree in law from India and came to Malaysia to
study PhD at a local university.

"He does not have much money. I plead for a lenient sentence as it was his
first offence and he promised not to repeat it," he said.

However, Deputy Public Prosecutor Muhamad Abu Hassan Ramli asked for a heavy
sentence to serve as a lesson for the accused.