BY Fadley Faisal

A 21-year-old local man who lurked in a bank machines bay in an attempt to steal money last month will learn his fate on September 1, while police are on the lookout for his accomplice.

The Intermediate Court convicted Abdul Harizzul Haziq bin Haji Darwin after he pleaded guilty on Monday for trespassing, entering and remaining inside a bank in Kampong Mentiri unlawfully with the intention of committing theft. Judge Radin Safiee bin Radin Mas Basiuni ordered the defendant to be remanded in prison pending sentencing.

Prosecutor Sabrina binti Haji Mahmud stated that after midnight on July 4, the defendant went to survey the bank as he planned to steal from the machines. On July 6, at 2am, the defendant went to the bank to execute his plan with an accomplice using the defendant’s car.

There, the defendant entered the bank machines area with an L-shaped tyre crank while his accomplice was on the lookout at the bank entrance.

The defendant went to the machine and used the tyre crank to pry open its outer door. He then took a rope and tied the machine’s outer door handle to his car.

The accomplice drove the car in an attempt to force open the door. However, the rope snapped, leading to an attempt to pry open the machine with a screwdriver. The defendant lifted the cover, and caused the alarm to go off. He took his equipment and hid at the back of the commercial building with his accomplice.

About half an hour later, realising the alarm had gone silent, they went back to the bank and attempted to pry open the machine again and triggering the alarm.

The defendant and his accomplice fled the bank empty handed.

The following morning, an AEGIS maintenance employee went to inspect the machine upon instructions and discovered that the machine’s cover was ajar. He filed a report to the company and the police soon arrived at the scene.

The Muara Police Station officers launched an investigation, leading to the defendant’s arrest.

It was revealed that the defendant was the mastermind behind the incident and admitted to committing the offences. The defendant also revealed that he committed the offences to pay off overdue payments on his car.

The estimated cost of damages including repairs to the machine amounted to BND3,385.

-- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin