Pahang exco man awarded RM1.2mil damages over libel

 High Court also orders social media influencer Tony Looi to issue a public apology to Sim Chon Siang and remove all defamatory content.

Lawyer Ng Yih Miin (left) said the court found that Pahang executive councillor Sim Chon Siang (right) had not misused funds related to Malaysians trafficked to Cambodia and Myanmar, as alleged.

KUALA LUMPUR:

 Pahang executive councillor Sim Chon Siang has won a defamation suit against social media influencer Tony Looi, with the High Court here awarding Sim a total of RM1.2 million in damages.

Lawyer Ng Yih Miin said the court ordered general and aggravated damages against Looi, the defendant, on April 9.

“The defendant is to pay RM800,000 in general damages and RM400,000 in aggravated damages, together with interest at 5% per annum from the date of judgment until full settlement, as well as RM10,000 in costs,” Ng said at a press conference today.

He said the case stemmed from defamatory statements made in videos published on Facebook, which alleged misconduct by Sim in relation to his efforts to rescue victims of human trafficking.

Ng said Sim had, between 2020 and 2023, undertaken a personal initiative to save Malaysians trafficked to Cambodia and Myanmar, carrying out 29 missions and rescuing 109 victims.

However, he said, Looi had alleged that Sim had misused funds and deceived the public.

“The court found that the statements meant that Sim had gone to Thailand and spent money taken from victims or their families, which is completely untrue,” he said.

Ng said the defamatory content had gone viral and damaged Sim’s reputation as an elected representative and member of the Pahang government.

He said the suit was filed at the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Nov 5, 2024, and a default judgment was obtained in March 2025.

“The defendant later applied to set aside the judgment but failed. On April 9, the court dismissed the application and maintained the judgment,” he said.

In addition to damages, the court ordered Looi to issue a public apology.

“The defendant is also ordered to publish an apology on all social media platforms and across media channels including The Star, Sin Chew, Nanyang and Utusan Malaysia,” Ng said.

He said the court also granted an injunction to prevent further defamatory statements.

“There is an injunction against the defendant to ensure that he or his agents are restrained from publishing or causing to be published the defamatory statements, including but not limited to on Facebook or any other social media platforms.

“There is also an order for all such publications to be retracted and deleted,” he said. - FMT