Ghost hunting at abandoned Batu Pahat mall lands car wash assistant in jail for trespassing

BATU PAHAT, Dec 26 — A 24-year-old car wash assistant was sentenced to three months in jail by the magistrate’s court today after admitting to trespassing in a building for paranormal activity last Saturday.

Muhammad Haikal Mesrol pled guilty after the charge was presented to him by a court interpreter in front of magistrate Suhaila Shafi’uddin, The New Straits Times (NST) reported.

The charge stated that he was accused of trespassing into the abandoned Plaza Wira Court building in Bukit Pasir at 7.10am on December 21.

Trespassing is an offence under Section 447 of the Penal Code, which carries a potential sentence of up to six months in prison, a fine of RM3,000, or both upon conviction.

According to the news report, the 66-year-old complainant, who owns the building, filed a police report after noticing that the premises had been illegally accessed.

Police revealed that the building’s gate, which had been secured with wooden planks, was found partially open at 7.10am.

Acting on tips received, they arrested the accused on the same day to assist with the investigation.

The prosecution was led by deputy public prosecutor Farah Wahidah Mohd Sharip, with the accused represented by Tan Song Yan from the National Legal Aid Foundation.

NST reported that the court sentenced Haikal to three months in prison, effective from the date of his arrest.

*Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story misreported the section of law for trespassing as Section 477 of the Penal Code instead of Section 447, and has since been corrected.