KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here sentenced a radiographer to 12 months' imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to having 10 issues of Islamic State (IS) publications.
Mohd Kamil Ghazali, 24, pleaded guilty on Friday to owning 10 issues of Dabiq magazines that he had downloaded to his tablet device from the Internet.
He committed the offence at 7.50am in front of the Taman Kechor administration complex in Kangar on Aug 19 last year.
The charge under Section 130JB(1)(a) of the Penal Code carries a jail term of up to seven years or a fine and the seizure of any offending material.
He also said that it was his friends on social media who triggered his curiosity.
“I only followed because I wanted to know about IS,” added Kamil.
Earlier, in mitigation, defence counsel Pyara Singh said his client was the sole breadwinner of the family.
“This is his first offence and he has realised his mistake and is ashamed," said Pyara, adding that Kamil had never committed any terrorism act, adding that the parents of the accused have a psychiatric history while Kamil himself suffers from chronic depression and is now under medication.
DPP Nur Aisyah Ahmad asked the court to mete out a deterrent punishment as a lesson to the public.
"Curiosity cannot be an excuse to have access to IS publications because it can bring harm to the community. One must also learn from a qualified teacher as a guide, especially when it comes to religious matter like jihad,” said Nur Aisyah.
