IPOH, Feb 22 — A diesel wholesaler company was fined RM95,000 by the Sessions Court here today after recording a guilty plea to a charge of selling diesel, which is a scheduled controlled item, to an unlicensed company two years ago.

Judge Azizah Ahmad imposed the penalty on Chin Kah Hei, the director of Chin Kok Keong Trading, and further ordered a six-month prison term if he failed to settle the fine.

Chin, a business partner in wholesale license holder Chin Kok Keong Trading was charged with selling 10,920 litres of diesel to K2 Bitumen Sdn Bhd, which did not have a license or written approval from the supply officer at Taman Perindustrian Tungzen, Kampung Kepayang, Batu Gajah, between 8am and 5pm on Dec 28, 2022.

The charges were filed under Regulation 9 (2) of the Control of Supplies Regulations 1974, which is punishable by a maximum fine of RM1 million or imprisonment of up to three years or both, upon conviction.

Repeat offences carry a maximum fine of RM3 million or a maximum prison term of five years or both.

The prosecution was led by Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living deputy public prosecutor Hasyutantee Khalil, while the company and the accused were represented by lawyer Teoh Chin Cheong.

Earlier, Teoh appealed for leniency for his client, citing the accused's guilty plea, marriage responsibilities and to save the court's time.

He added that his client's business had deteriorated and he was also saddled with numerous bank debts.

However, Hasyutantee urged a deterrent sentence to serve as a lesson to Chin to refrain from making the same mistake, emphasising that the issue of illegal diesel sales poses problems. — Bernama