A 33-YEAR-OLD man has been sentenced to six months in prison and fined RM15,000 after pleading guilty to posting offensive remarks against Islam on Facebook on March 17.
Ricky Shane Cagampang was handed the sentence before Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court Judge Amir Shah Amir today.
Ricky, who converted to Islam two years ago, made the insulting posting on his social media account at around 12.05pm on March 17, the court was told.
Kota Kinabalu police chief Mohd Zaidi bin Abdullah said they received a report regarding the religious insults made on Facebook which had gone viral.
“The incident, which quickly gained traction on social media, involved Facebook user ‘Ricky Shane CA’ posting comments deemed derogatory towards Islam,” he said.
“According to witnesses, the inflammatory remarks sparked dissatisfaction among members of the Muslim community, who perceived them as provocative and insulting to their faith, eliciting a wave of negative reactions from various individuals,” he added in a statement.
The account holder was instantly identified and presented for questioning on the same day, said Zaidi.
The case is being investigated under Section 298 of the Penal Code/233 AKM 1998.
The suspect was formally charged under Section 233(1)(a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 at Session Court 3, Kota Kinabalu court complex.
In mitigation, Ricky who hails from Tawau told the court he had converted to Islam in March 2021, Harian Metro reported.
He claimed that he had only commented on a post on the New Straits Times’s Facebook page and did not realise that his comments caused serious consequences until he was charged in court.
He added that he had deleted the comment within two or three minutes after it was uploaded.
"The carelessness of my actions in making such comments and uploading was something that was not thought out and it was really based on my emotions when responding to other comments and posts.
Ricky also stressed that he had no intention or motive to degrade Islam.
If he fails to pay the fine of RM15,000, he is liable to serve an additional four-month prison term on top of the six months. – The Vibes, March 21, 2024
