JOHOR BAHRU: An Indonesian woman was fined RM500 and ordered to perform community service after pleading guilty to littering by discarding cigarette butts and drink bottles in a public area.
Anita Lukman, 49, admitted to the offence after the charge was read out to her before judge Nor Aziati Jaafar.
She was charged with committing the offence at Jalan Ibrahim Sultan, Stulang Laut, at 12.41am on Jan 1.
The case, the first of its kind in Malaysia, framed under Section 77A of the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 (Act 672), provides for a maximum fine of RM2,000 and a community service order not exceeding 12 hours in total within six months.
In mitigation, Anita, a single mother of two, aged eight and 15, requested a lighter sentence, saying she was in Malaysia only to help a friend.
Nor Aziati sentenced her to a RM500 fine in default of a 15-day jail term, and six hours of community service. Failure to complete the community service could lead to a fine of RM2,000 to RM10,000.
The prosecution was conducted by SWCorp prosecuting officer Siti Adora Rahtimin while Anita was unrepresented.
In a separate proceeding, a 28-year-old Bangladeshi man, Sultan MD, was also charged with littering cigarette butts at the same location on Jan 1.
He requested that the proceedings be conducted in his native language, saying he did not understand Malay.
The court fixed Jan 28 for re-mention.
