Subang Jaya bakery owner charged with employing 19 illegal immigrants
KHAIRAH N. KARIM
New Straits TimesJuly 6, 2017
SEPANG: A bakery owner was charged at the Sessions Court here today with employing 19 illegal immigrants.
Hamdam Ismail, 45, however pleaded not guilty to the charge before judge Saiful Akmal Mohd Said.
He was accused of having employed 18 Indonesians and a Bangladeshi immigrant without valid documents at Kedai Kek Harissa in Taman Pinggiran USJ 1/11 in Subang Jaya.
He allegedly committed the offence at 4.40pm on May 23, this year.
In mitigating for lower bail, counsel Zaflee Pakwanteh who represented the accused, said his client is now jobless since his shop was raided by Immigration enforcement officers the same day.
He has no source of income as his bakery has been closed since the raid.
"My client also needs to take care of his wife who is expecting and his five children who are still in school," he said.
Prosecuting officer from the Immigration Department Norzam Shuhada Abdull Wahab earlier proposed a RM95,000 bail.
The charge under Section 55B (3) of the Immigration Act 1959/1963 carries a jail term of not less than six months and not more than five years and shall be liable for whipping not more than six strokes , if convicted.
Hamdam was allowed RM43,000 bail with two local sureties and was ordered to report to the Selangor Immigration office on the first week of each month.
He was also ordered to surrender his passport to the court until the disposal of the case.
The judge fixed Aug 8 for mention.
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