A farmer was fined RM15,000 by the Sepang sessions court today for making and transmitting an offensive communication regarding the royal institution via his Facebook page last February.
Judge Ahmad Fuad Othman imposed the fine on Faisal Yusof, 37, after he changed his plea to guilty when the case was called up for mention, Bernama reported.
Before meting out the sentence, the judge warned Faisal to be more cautious when using social media.
“You deleted the comment, but look what has happened, it persists even after deletion. You’re still young, you need to think long and hard,” he was quoted as saying.
Faisal was charged under Section 233(1)(a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 for making and transmitting the offensive communication via his Facebook account “Mohd Faisal Yusof” with the intention of causing annoyance to others.
The posting, made at 12.40am on Feb 9, was subsequently deleted but was still detected by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission at 1.40pm on the same day.
The offence carries a maximum fine of RM50,000 or up to one year in jail, or both, with additional daily fines if the offence continues after conviction.
