Morle Shanmugam, who claimed he was assaulted by 20 policemen after attending the Thaipusam festival early this year, was instead convicted of obstructing an officer from carrying out his duties by throwing a beer can at him along Penang Road.

NONE Morle ( right ), 30, admitted to having committed the offense at the junction of Chulia Street and Upper Penang Road on February 9, about 2.40am.

Morle, who hails from Perak and is currently jobless, had in April claimed trial to the charge under Section 186 of the Penal Code for obstructing a public servant from discharging his duties.

Morle had claimed that he was assaulted by a group of 20 policemen when he stopped a man from seizing his beer can without knowing that man is a police officer.

Today, after a plea bargain in closed court, Magistrate Norhayati Ibrahim handed Morle a fine of RM2,500 in default of one month's jail term.

Emma Syafawati Abdul Wahab and Khairul Fairus Rahmat acted as deputy public prosecutors in the trial, which lasted two days.

While mitigating, Morle’s lawyer M Viswanathan said Morle agreed to a guilty charge during the plea bargain and expressed regret over the incident.

"Morle also agreed to obtain treatment for his health problem and a medical report has been submitted to the Magistrate," Viswanathan said.

"All quarters in the plea bargain process agree that he is a jobless man and suffers from schizophrenia," added the lawyer.

Suspected of hiding item under shirt

Morle, a former technician who worked in Penang, has five siblings, and was accompanied by his parents at the courthouse in George Town.

najib thaipusam batu caves 070212 Penang Suaram coordinator Lee Hui Fei and several social activists were present at the court.

According to his charge sheet, Morle was approached by a group of policemen who were carrying out an operation along Penang Road, a tourist belt, and a location for active night life.

The police had suspected Morle of hiding an unidentified item underneath his shirt, and advanced upon him to retrieve the matter.

However, when the police tried to search his body, Morle refused, asking, "what do you want?"

He then took out a beer can and struggled while police apprehended him, and he was later handcuffed and brought to the police station.