SEREMBAN – A trader today pleaded not guilty in the sessions court here to the charge of trafficking two Indonesian women for the purpose of sexual exploitation in Bahau, Jempol.
The accused Muhammad Soleh Abdullah, 36, made the plea after the charges were read before judge Datin Surita Budin.
Soleh and another suspect still at large between November 2022 and March 11, at about 11.50pm at No 85 Taman Khaya 2 Bahau, Jempol was charged with the trafficking of a 28-year-old woman.
For the second charge, Soleh together with his suspected accomplice were found to be trafficking a 34-year-old woman between March 2 and March 11, at the same place and time.
The offence was committed under Section 12 of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007.
Deputy public prosecutor Hafizah Zainul Hashimi handled the prosecution while lawyer M. Gobinathan represented Soleh.
The judge then set bail of RM20,000 with one surety and the accused has to report to the nearest police station every month and submit his passport to the court.
The court also ordered Soleh to not harass the prosecution witnesses until the case was over. The case is set for mention on May 9. – Bernama, March 28, 2023
