A TOTAL of 159 Chinese nationals were charged at three separate Magistrates’ Courts in Johor Bharu on Tuesday over an alleged criminal conspiracy involving attempts to carry out a fraudulent cryptocurrency investment scheme two weeks ago.
The accused, aged between 20 and 58, gave mixed pleas after the charges were read out by Mandarin interpreters before Magistrates Atifah Hazimah Wahab, A. Shaarmini and Nurzihan Abdul Rehman.
According to the charge sheets, those accused were alleged to have been parties to a criminal conspiracy by agreeing among themselves to commit an unlawful act, namely attempting to cheat victims through a non-existent cryptocurrency investment scheme.
The alleged offence was said to be contrary to Section 417 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 511 of the same law.
They were charged under Section 120B(1) of the Penal Code, read together with Section 511 of the Penal Code.
The accused also faced a separate charge of being non-Malaysian citizens without valid passes or permits issued under the law to enter the country.
The immigration offence was charged under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.
The offences were allegedly committed at a premises in Jalan Forest City 16, Gelang Patah, Tanjung Kupang, Iskandar Puteri, at about 12.30pm on July 15.
The courts imposed fines ranging from RM4,000 to RM10,000 on those who pleaded guilty to both charges.
For those who claimed trial, Magistrate Atifah Hazimah allowed bail of RM7,000 with two Malaysian sureties, while Magistrate Shaarmini did not grant bail.
The courts fixed mention dates between Aug 13 and Aug 24 for the cases involving accused who claimed trial, pending the submission of relevant documents.
The prosecution was led by Deputy Public Prosecutors Sarah Siti Aisyah Mustapha Kamal, Adilah Farzana Che Ad, Anis Shafeeqah Mohd Shariffudin, Nor Hidayah Mohd Tarmizi and Nor Deana Aqilah Aliman.
The accused were represented by lawyers Heng Wang Qianwei, Heng Wang Qianyou, Clement Tiong and Ng Mee Xuan.
It is understood that 194 individuals arrested in connection with the case have been ordered to face prosecution, with 159 charged on Tuesday and the remaining 35 expected to be charged the following day. - July 28, 2026
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