Kuching man who tore, scattered Quran pages claims Satan told him to

KUCHING (Jan 29): A 57-year-old man was sentenced to five months in jail by the Magistrates’ Court here today for tearing pages of the Quran and scattering them on the road.

Mohamad Jais Yusuf, who pleaded guilty to a charge framed under Section 295 of the Penal Code before Magistrate Nursyaheeqa Nazwa Radzali, claimed he heard Satan whispering to him to commit the act.

The Section carries a jail term of up to two years, or a fine, or both, upon conviction.

According to the charge, he intentionally defiled the sacred Quran by tearing several pages from it and scattering them on a public road, with the intention of insulting Islam or with the knowledge that such an act was likely to insult the religion of Islam.

He committed the offence at around 8.40pm on Jalan Borneo here on Jan 23.

Based on the facts of the case, on Jan 24, a complainant lodged a police report after he came across a video on Facebook showing pages torn from the Quran scattered on Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman and Jalan Borneo.

Police arrested Mohamad Jais on Monday.

The investigation found that Mohamad Jais’ act of tearing and scattering several pages of the Quran on the road was witnessed by a member of the public.

The incident was also captured on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage.

Mohamad Jais also tested positive for methamphetamine and amphetamine.

He told police he was aware of his actions and admitted to committing the act, claiming that he heard Satan urging him to do so.

He has several criminal records involving narcotics and other crimes.

It is understood that he does not have a person with disabilities (OKU) or psychiatric card.

Deputy public prosecutor Muhammad Afiq Safly Nor Kazly appeared for the prosecution while Mohamad Jais was did not have legal representation.