Singapore businessman fined $2,700 for beating dog in Malaysia
PETALING JAYA Singaporean businessman Yee Kok Chew was fined RM8,000 (S$2,700) in default of eight months' imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to beating a dog.
The light-coloured canine, known as Furby, was beaten up in Puchong in April last year.
The video of the incident enraged animal lovers. In it, a man was seen violently beating a dog after he fell off his bicycle after the dog broke free of its leash and barked at him.
Magistrate Mohamad Ikhwan Mohd Nasir meted out the sentence to Yee after he changed his plea to guilty when the charge was read to him again by a court translator, reported New Straits Times.
Yee's lawyer, Mr Jerald Gomez, pleaded leniency, saying the dog did not suffer any serious injuries.
"My client lost his job after the video of the incident went viral on social media. He is also remorseful of his act," he said.
But Deputy Public Prosecutor Nabilah Mohammad Zanudin pressed for a deterrent sentence against the accused.
While the court proceedings went on, Furby, who is currently under the care of the Petaling district veterinary office, waited in the witness room with a veterinary officer.
Several people, including lawyers and passers-by, tried to take selfies with the canine as it was ushered out after the proceedings.
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