In a ruling today, the owner of Crackhouse Comedy Club, Mohamad Rizal Van Geyzel, was fined RM8,000 by the Sessions Court for transmitting racially offensive content through Facebook last year. Judge N. Priscilla Hemamalini pronounced the fine after Mohamad Rizal pled guilty to the first of three charges levied against him.
The verdict came after deputy public prosecutor Nurul’Ain Abu Bakar told the court that the Attorney General’s Chambers Office (AGC) had acknowledged the third representation filed by Mohamad Rizal on June 7. The AGC accepted Mohamad Rizal’s plea of guilt on the first charge, considering the other two under Section 171A of the Criminal Procedure Code.
The first charge, brought under Section 233(1) (a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, accused the 40-year-old comedy club owner of intentionally offending others through offensive posts on his Facebook profile, “Rizal van Geyzel,” on July 4, 2022. This case was examined by the Cyber Crime and Multimedia Investigation Division Office on July 13 last year.
However, the other two charges implicated Mohamad Rizal in posting offensive content on Instagram and TikTok on July 5 and 6, 2022, respectively, intending to offend others.
The deputy public prosecutor Noor Haslinda Che Seman, managing the case, argued that the court should impose a significant fine due to the severity of the offence and the public outrage it generated.
Mohamad Rizal’s lawyer, M. Pravin, pointed out his client’s responsibilities towards three children, one of whom has disabilities, and his 74-year-old father with chronic heart disease. His client, now divorced and devoid of his main source of income, deeply regrets his actions, pledging not to repeat the mistakes.
This news is based on a malaymail.com article.
