Indonesian man first in Malaysia to end up in jail for littering

 The 36-year-old man ends up in jail after failing to pay a RM1,000 fine for discarding a cigarette butt in public.

Johor SWCorp director Zainal Fitri Ahmad said the Indonesian man will serve a six-hour community service order upon completing his jail sentence. (Bernama pic)

JOHOR BAHRU:

An Indonesian man has become the first person in Malaysia to end up in jail for discarding a cigarette butt in a public place.

Johor solid waste and public cleansing management corporation (SWCorp) director Zainal Fitri Ahmad said the 36-year-old general worker was found guilty of the offence in the Stulang area last February.

He said the man began serving his one-month jail sentence on Aug 28 after failing to settle the RM1,000 fine imposed by the court.

“The man will undergo a six-hour community service order (CSO) upon completing his jail sentence,” he told a press conference after inspecting the implementation of the 50th Series of CSO here today.

Zainal said 107 cases resulting in CSOs had been disposed of in court to date, involving 59 Malaysians and 48 foreign nationals.

The cases resulted in total fines of RM71,550, with CSOs ranging from two to 10 hours, he said.

He said 3,358 enforcement operations had been carried out in Johor to date, resulting in 3,095 “Notices of Offence” being issued.

“To date, 789 investigation papers have also been submitted to the deputy public prosecutor for further action,” he said.

Zainal said littering in public places was an offence under Section 77A of the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 (Act 672).

He said offenders could be fined up to RM2,000 or ordered to undergo community service for up to six months, while failure to comply with the order could result in further action, including a maximum fine of RM10,000. - FMT