KUALA LUMPUR, 1 May 2018:
A Danish citizen has become the first person to be punished under the new Anti-Fake News Act – over a YouTube video he had posted regarding the fatal shooting of Dr Fadi Mohammed Al Batsh, a Palestinian imam shot near his residence in Setapak two weeks ago.
He was sentenced yesterday to a week’s jail and fined RM10,000 by the sessions court here.
Judge Zaman Mohd Noor sentenced Salah Salem Saleh Sulaiman, 46, after the accused – wearing glasses, a white robe, and a green skullcap – pleaded guilty to the charges, read out in English.
The man, who is of Yemeni descent and working as a horse caretaker in Denmark, became the first individual to be charged and sentenced under the Anti-Fake News Act 2018 after the Act was gazetted and came into effect on April 11.
Salah Salem – who came to Malaysia on April 11 as a tourist – was ordered to serve the jail sentence from the date of his arrest on April 23 and would be imprisoned for a month if he failed to pay the fine.
Salah Salem was charged with maliciously publishing fake news in the form of a YouTube video under the user name Salah Sulaiman titled ’Pembunuhan Sheikh Al Ghazawi Fadi Al Batsy di Kuala Lumpur, cukuplah Allah bagi kamu sebaik-baik wakil’, near the Puteri Idaman condominium, Jalan Meranti, Setapak here between 6.50am and 9am on April 21.
The charge was filed in accordance with Subsection 4 (1) of the Anti-Fake News Act 2018 which imposes a maximum fine of RM500,000 or imprisonment of up to six years or both.
Earlier, after the charge was read out the video was also screened on television – featuring a man speaking in Arabic at the site of Dr Fadi’s murder, claiming that countless calls were made to the police who arrived at the scene 50 minutes later while an ambulance came an hour later.
The man also claimed he was with Dr Fadi when the latter was shot and that he was still breathing after being shot.
When questioned by judge Zaman, the accused confirmed the video recording was his and he was the individual in the video.
Appealing to reduce his sentence, the man – who was unrepresented – said he regretted his mistake and apologised to the court, saying he had come to Malaysia to travel and did not know the country had an anti-fake news law.
“I didn’t mean to hurt anyone, it was a moment of anger. I regret it. That is my mistake. I apologise, I do not know anything about Malaysia. I apologise to everyone in Malaysia… I have three wives and six children, I have no one in Malaysia,” he said, repeatedly apologising and then bowed his head.
Deputy public prosecutor Noor Jazilah Mohd Yushaa urged the court for an appropriate punishment, as the spread of false news must be prevented – since it has a negative impact on the innocent and is detrimental to public order and the country.
“The dissemination of fake news not only has affected the image of the police but also that of the nation and also caused anguish to the victim’s family. The accused should be more respectful of Malaysia’s laws.”
According to the facts of the case, police received a one-minute and 49 seconds video recording showing an Arab man making a statement – that also displayed subtitles in Bahasa Malaysia – and investigations found that video content containing fake news aimed at tarnishing the image of the police.
On April 21, Dr Fadi, 35, who was also an electrical engineering lecturer at a private higher educational institution here, was shot dead outside Idaman Puteri’s condominium in Setapak here while walking to Surau Medan Idaman to lead the morning prayers at about 6am.
– Bernama