TEMERLOH, Dec 4 — The High Court here today, allowed the application of Malaysian Crime Watch Task Force (MyWatch) chairman Datuk R. Sri Sanjeevan to postpone his jail term until his appeal has been decided by the Court of Appeal.
Judge Datuk Hassan Abdul Ghani, however, ordered Sanjeevan to pay bail of RM35,000 in two sureties and submit his passport, if any, to the court until the case is settled.
“The applicant must also report himself to the Semenyih police station in Kajang, Selangor every week until the hearing of the case at the Court of Appeal is completed and to obtain the permission of the Kajang district police chief before leaving the district.
“If the applicant violates any of these conditions, his bail would be cancelled,” he said.
Sanjeevan, who was wearing a shirt, was seen smiling at his family members who were in the court’s public gallery, upon hearing the decision.
Counsel S.Preakas, who represented Sanjeevan at Wednesday’s proceedings, had informed the court that the Court of Appeal had set Jan 14 as the date for the hearing of his client’s appeal.
At the proceedings, deputy public prosecutor Law Chin How represented the Public Prosecutor who was named as the respondent in the application.
Sanjeevan was earlier sentenced to three months in jail and fined RM7,000 after being convicted by the Magistrate’s Court on August 14, 2018, for allegedly blackmailing a businessman, seven years ago.
He was charged with committing the offence for demanding RM1,500 cash or the victim faced the risk of not being able to continue business at 9.45pm on July 1, 2013 at Jalan Dagangan 8, Triang Commercial Centre, Bera near here.
However, the Magistrate’s Court at that time received Sanjeevan’s application to postpone his prison sentence and ordered bail of RM3,000 against him to be increased to RM6,000. The fine, was however settled.
On November 27, the High Court here in hearing Sanjeevan’s appeal against the conviction and sentence upheld the Magistrate’s Court’s decision, and rejected his application to once again postpone his jail sentence as he intended to appeal to a higher level.
The decision resulted in Sanjeevan being sent to Penor Prison in Kuantan, about 130 kilometres from here, to serve his sentence on the same day. — Bernama