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Free Malaysia Today
6 days ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Vietnamese man's 4-year jail term for keeping leopard parts reinstated
Nguyen Van Tien claimed he was given 54 portions of leopard to take home when he met several other Vietnamese nationals here in Malaysia. (Wikipedia pic) PUTRAJAYA : The Court of Appeal has reinstated a Vietnamese man's four-year jail term for illegal possession of 54 leopard parts, after allowing the prosecution's appeal on the inadequacy of his sentence. A three-member bench chaired by Justice Hashim Hamzah said they were restoring the jail term imposed by the sessions court on Nguyen Van Tien as the offence relating to wildlife is serious. 'We set aside the High Court ruling which had imposed a two-year jail term. The penalty of a RM300,000 fine, or 12 months' imprisonment, however, remains,' he said. Justices Zaini Mazlan and Noorin Badaruddin were also on the bench. Nguyen was caught by wildlife rangers on Dec 12, 2023 at Taman Negara in Pahang with the leopard parts, weapons and tools. He was charged under Section 68(1)(b) of the Wildlife Conservation Act with keeping any part or derivative of a totally protected wildlife without a special permit. Those found guilty may be jailed for up to 15 years and fined a minimum of RM150,000. The leopard is a protected species in Malaysia. It is on a special list in the Act which carries some of the most severe penalties in the law. On April 24, 2024, the Raub sessions court sentenced Ngyuen to four years' jail and a fine of RM300,000 after he pleaded guilty at the second mention of the case. In September, the High Court reduced his jail term by two years but maintained the fine. Nguyen had also faced three charges under the Taman Negara (Pahang) (Amendment) Enactment 2018 for trespassing and illegal possession of weapons and tools, for which the court sentenced him to 24 months' jail on each charge. The court ordered the jail terms to be served concurrently, and Nguyen did not appeal against the sentences. Today, Nguyen, who came to seek employment in Malaysia, claimed that he met several other Vietnamese nationals who gave him the leopard meat in 54 portions to take home. 'I'm sorry for being ignorant of Malaysian laws regarding the protection of wildlife,' he said through a Vietnamese interpreter as he was not represented by a lawyer. He pleaded to the court to maintain the two-year jail term so that he could return home to care for his aged parents, his four children and his wife. Deputy public prosecutor Aznee Salmie Ahmad said the court should be at the forefront of creating awareness on wildlife protection by imposing a deterrent sentence. She said protected wildlife was a national heritage. 'The offender was bold enough to commit the offence at our national park,' she said, adding that a clear message must be sent to all that Malaysia was committed to conserving its wildlife. Aznee said the Court of Appeal should interfere and correct the sentence imposed by the High Court, which she described as manifestly inadequate. Representatives of Traffic South East Asia, a wildlife trade monitoring network, and Justice for Wildlife Malaysia were present to observe the proceedings.
Malay Mail
6 days ago
- Malay Mail
Leopard parts case: Appellate court ups jail term to four years for Vietnamese offender
PUTRAJAYA, July 11 — The Court of Appeal today reinstated the four-year imprisonment sentence originally imposed by the Sessions Court on a Vietnamese man for keeping 54 parts of a protected leopard species without a special permit. A three-member bench comprising Justices Datuk Hashim Hamzah, Datuk Mohamed Zaini Mazlan and Datuk Noorin Badaruddin allowed the prosecution's appeal to overturn the Temerloh High Court's decision, which had earlier reduced Nguyen Van Tien's jail term to two years. Justice Hashim, who delivered the court's unanimous decision, said that the judiciary takes wildlife-related offences seriously. 'Therefore, the sentence imposed by the High Court is set aside, and the four-year jail sentence imposed by the Sessions Court is reinstated, effective from the date of arrest,' he said. The fine of RM300,000 in default of 12 months' imprisonment imposed by the High Court remains unchanged. The prosecution had appealed against the High Court's decision to reduce the prison sentence but did not challenge the fine. On February 24, 2024, Nguyen, 34, pleaded guilty at the Sessions Court to the charge of keeping parts of a leopard (Panthera pardus), a protected species, without a special permit in the National Park, Pahang, at about 12.30pm, on December 12, 2023. He was charged under Section 68(1)(b) of the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 and sentenced under Section 68 92) (c) of the same law. Nguyen was sentenced to four years' imprisonment and fined RM300,000, in default of four years' jail, effective from the date of his arrest on December 12, 2023. In October last year, the High Court reduced the sentence to two years while maintaining the fine in default of 12 months' jail. During today's proceedings, deputy public prosecutor Aznee Salmie Ahmad argued that the reduced prison sentence would send the wrong message, portraying Malaysia as a lenient jurisdiction for foreign offenders involved in transboundary wildlife crimes. She said that Nguyen's actions had not only harmed the environment but also impacted the sovereignty of Malaysian law, thus warranting a stern custodial sentence. Representing himself through an interpreter, Nguyen told the court that he had come to Malaysia in search of work and claimed that he received the leopard meat from other Vietnamese acquaintances to take home, adding that he was unaware of Malaysian laws. He apologised and pleaded for the two-year sentence to be maintained, saying he wished to return to Vietnam. Nguyen also told the court that he is responsible for supporting his elderly parents and young children in Vietnam, noting that his wife is unemployed. — Bernama
Daily Express
6 days ago
- Daily Express
Vietnamese man's 4-year jail term for keeping leopard parts reinstated
Published on: Friday, July 11, 2025 Published on: Fri, Jul 11, 2025 By: V Anbalagan, FMT Text Size: Nguyen Van Tien claimed he was given 54 portions of leopard to take home when he met several other Vietnamese nationals here in Malaysia. (Wikipedia pic) PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has reinstated a Vietnamese man's four-year jail term for illegal possession of 54 leopard parts, after allowing the prosecution's appeal on the inadequacy of his sentence. A three-member bench chaired by Justice Hashim Hamzah said they were restoring the jail term imposed by the sessions court on Nguyen Van Tien as the offence relating to wildlife is serious. 'We set aside the High Court ruling which had imposed a two-year jail term. The penalty of a RM300,000 fine, or 12 months' imprisonment, however, remains,' he said. Justices Zaini Mazlan and Noorin Badaruddin were also on the bench. Nguyen was caught by wildlife rangers on Dec 12, 2023 at Taman Negara in Pahang with the leopard parts, weapons and tools. He was charged under Section 68(1)(b) of the Wildlife Conservation Act with keeping any part or derivative of a totally protected wildlife without a special permit. Those found guilty may be jailed for up to 15 years and fined a minimum of RM150,000. The leopard is a protected species in Malaysia. It is on a special list in the Act which carries some of the most severe penalties in the law. On April 24, 2024, the Raub sessions court sentenced Ngyuen to four years' jail and a fine of RM300,000 after he pleaded guilty at the second mention of the case. In September, the High Court reduced his jail term by two years but maintained the fine. Nguyen had also faced three charges under the Taman Negara (Pahang) (Amendment) Enactment 2018 for trespassing and illegal possession of weapons and tools, for which the court sentenced him to 24 months' jail on each charge. The court ordered the jail terms to be served concurrently, and Nguyen did not appeal against the sentences. Today, Nguyen, who came to seek employment in Malaysia, claimed that he met several other Vietnamese nationals who gave him the leopard meat in 54 portions to take home. 'I'm sorry for being ignorant of Malaysian laws regarding the protection of wildlife,' he said through a Vietnamese interpreter as he was not represented by a lawyer. He pleaded to the court to maintain the two-year jail term so that he could return home to care for his aged parents, his four children and his wife. Deputy public prosecutor Aznee Salmie Ahmad said the court should be at the forefront of creating awareness on wildlife protection by imposing a deterrent sentence. She said protected wildlife was a national heritage. 'The offender was bold enough to commit the offence at our national park,' she said, adding that a clear message must be sent to all that Malaysia was committed to conserving its wildlife. Aznee said the Court of Appeal should interfere and correct the sentence imposed by the High Court, which she described as manifestly inadequate. Representatives of Traffic South East Asia, a wildlife trade monitoring network, and Justice for Wildlife Malaysia were present to observe the proceedings. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
