KOTA KINABALU: A man was discharged and acquitted by the Sessions Court here on Monday of three charges of illegally controlling, keeping and taking care of agarwood with unpaid forest product royalty.
Sessions Court Judge Amir Shah Amir Hassan freed Azrizal Aziz after the prosecution applied for the charges to be withdrawn following the acceptance of his representation.
The prosecution informed the court that a compound of RM4,000 offered to Azrizal had been paid, and the court ordered his bail to be refunded and all seized items returned to their rightful owner.
Azrizal had been charged with illegally controlling, keeping without a licence and taking care of agarwood with unpaid royalty in a vehicle parked at Bakut Car Wash,Tuaran, at 7.30pm on Dec 7, 2023.
The charges were framed under Section 30(1)(g) of the Forest Enactment 1968, punishable under Section 30(2)(b) of the same Enactment, while a co-accused, Filipino Fahril Muhammad, was fined a total of RM40,000 on June 18, 2024 after pleading guilty.
