TAWAU: A woman was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to two charges of submitting documents with false information for children's identity card registrations in 2011 and 2012.
The accused, Kartinadari Amai, 56, made her plea before magistrate Don Stiwin Malanjum after the charges were read by the magistrate's court interpreter here today.
According to the charges, the mother of 13 was accused of providing false information when registering the initial identity cards for a boy and a girl, both of whom were not her biological children.
The offences were committed at the Tawau branch of the National Registration Department on March 11, 2011, and Nov 16, 2012, respectively.
She was charged under Rule 25 (1)(b) of the National Registration Regulations 1990 (Amendment 2007), which provides for a prison term not exceeding three years, a fine not exceeding RM20,000, or both.
Earlier, the accused, a salted fish trader from Kampung Inderasabah, represented by lawyer Jhassery P. Kang of the National Legal Aid Foundation, appealed for a lighter fine.
"This is the accused's first offence, and she has pleaded guilty and expressed regret, vowing not to repeat the offence. We request consideration for a lighter fine," he said.
However, state NRD prosecuting officer Mohd Naser Nadzeri argued for a preventive sentence, citing public interest and social justice.
"The accused facilitated the application for identity cards for two foreigners who were not her biological children in 2011 and 2012, allowing them access to benefits as Malaysian citizens, a serious offence as they were not eligible," he said.
Based on the case facts, three children registered by the accused were born in 1999.
The three children were not the accused's biological children. Two had already been registered for identity cards, while the third's card had yet to be issued.
The court sentenced the accused to two years for each charge, to be served consecutively, starting from the date of arrest on Aug 30.