A 36-year-old local man was sentenced to a total of 16 months’ imprisonment by the Magistrates’ Court today after admitting to breaking into a house in Kampong Lumapas on Christmas Day last year, stealing numerous valuables and later destroying the home’s CCTV system to conceal the crime.
Mohammad Haris bin Jefridin was sentenced by Magistrate Muhammad Qamarul Affyian Abdul Rahman after he pleaded guilty to two charges under the Penal Code.
For the first charge under section 380 of the Penal Code, Chapter 22, for committing theft in a building used as a human dwelling, he was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment. For the second charge under section 426 of the same Code for committing mischief, he was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment. The court ordered both sentences to run consecutively, bringing the total jail term to 16 months.
The court heard from Deputy Public Prosecutor Ahmad Abdullah that the offences were committed on December 25, 2025, sometime between 9pm and 11pm, at a house located in Kampong Lumapas.
According to the statement of facts, the defendant was at his home in Kampong Lumapas at about 8.50pm when he received a WhatsApp message from a friend, identified as Iwan, who told him that he needed money. The defendant asked Iwan to come over and, after his arrival, the two men left together in Iwan’s car and drove around Kampong Lumapas.
When they reached Jalan Perupuk, the defendant recognised the house and recalled being told by another acquaintance that the homeowner was away in Miri for Christmas.
Seizing the opportunity, the pair formed a common intention to commit theft and decided to break into the house.
They entered the compound through an unlocked gate, moved to the back of the house and forced open a metal gate leading to a storeroom. From there, the defendant used a screwdriver found inside the storeroom to jam and unlock a door connecting to the main house.
Once inside, the two split up and ransacked several areas of the house, including the living room, dining room and bedrooms, before making off with a large number of items.
These included a Maruyama sling blower, a Pevy portable karaoke speaker, BND700 in cash, a Vincci handbag, an Apple TV device, a Samsung Note 20 mobile phone, an iPhone 8, a Zhulian gold bracelet, an iPad Mini and several wristwatches of various brands, including Tag Heuer, Fossil and Guess.
After leaving the house, the pair returned to the car and drove off, stopping at a nearby shop to buy drinks. Later that same night, Iwan informed the defendant that there were CCTV cameras installed in the house, prompting them to return to the property. They entered the house again through the same route, removed the CCTV camera from the living room and took the recorder from another room.
The defendant then switched off the main power supply to the house so as not to arouse suspicion among neighbours. He later burned the CCTV camera and recorder at the back of his own home, causing damage valued at BND132.
The following day, December 26, 2025, the homeowner returned from Miri with his family and discovered that the house had no electricity and that the back kitchen door was open. Upon inspecting the premises, he found several rooms had been rummaged through and numerous items missing, prompting him to lodge a police report.
Police investigations led to the defendant’s arrest, who admitted to committing the offences together with another person who remains at large. Most of the stolen items, except for the portable karaoke speaker, were recovered from the defendant’s home.
The court was told that Mohammad Haris is married, has six children, is unemployed, and has previous criminal convictions on record.
