COMMENT | You hear about a burglary in the neighbourhood. Three days later, you learn that four houses in the area had been broken into within a week. The occupants file police reports.

Weeks pass. Nothing changes. No updates, no progress. Fear settles in like a second shadow.

Now imagine you have a skill - making videos that people actually watch.

So, you film a short clip: not inciting violence, not naming names, just voicing the frustration of a community abandoned by those meant to protect it. You post it online, hoping to remind the authorities to keep the residents updated.

That act of civic desperation turned 54-year-old Shahril Abdul Rani into a criminal - in the eyes of the law.

Acting on a complaint, the MCMC prosecuted him under...