KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 — Malaysian influencer Rumaisyah Yahya was sentenced to one day in prison and fined RM400 for stealing supermarket goods.
The 31-year-old who has over 200,000 followers on her Instagram account, was sentenced by Magistrate Nurul Izzah Shaharuddin after pleading guilty to stealing RM108.18 worth of items, including an air freshener, toothpaste, bath soap and broccoli, reported Berita Harian.
The court also ruled that she will serve a three-day prison sentence if she fails to pay the fine.
Rumaisyah committed the offence at 4.30pm on November 1 at a supermarket in a prominent shopping centre on Jalan Ampang.
The charge was filed under Section 380 of the Penal Code, which comes with a maximum imprisonment term of 10 years and a potential fine.
In the case of a second offence, both imprisonment and a fine can be imposed.
During the trial, deputy public prosecutor Sheryn Yong Shi Yee asked for the court to mete out a fitting punishment to serve as a lesson for the accused.
Rumaisyah’s defence counsel, Muhammad Rhastdan Abdul Wahab, however, asked for a prison sentence and a minimum fine because his client has no fixed income and is supporting her 65-year-old mother. Rhastdan added that it was his client’s first offence and the stolen items were daily essentials.
“The client repents and begs to be given a second chance,” he said.
Based on facts of the case, Rumaisyah, who is also a yoga instructor, took some items and put them in her bag.
She then walked to another section of the supermarket and left without paying.
A security guard who stopped her discovered the bag she was carrying contained supermarket goods, for which she couldn’t produce the receipt.
