‘Geng Upik' Datuk among jailed
Published on: Friday, June 06, 2025
Published on: Fri, Jun 06, 2025
By: Jo Ann Mool Text Size: Maslan and Nelson. Kota Kinabalu: Two individuals, including a Datuk, who acted as the leader of the organised crime 'Geng Upik' group, were sentenced on Thursday to between three and five years by the High Court for their involvement in the organised crime group. Businessmen Datuk Maslan Sani, 42, and Nelson Yen Yee Chung, 47, pleaded guilty separately before Judge Datuk Dr Lim Hock Leng to the charge against them, respectively.
Advertisement Maslan was sentenced to five years in jail for being a member of the 'Geng Upik' between 2015 and Dec 24, 2023, here. The charge, under Section 130V(1) of the Penal Code carries a jail term of between five and 20 years, on conviction. Yen was handed three years' jail after pleading guilty to the alternative charge of assisting 'Geng Upik' to further the interest of the group between 2023 and Dec 24, 2023. The alternative charge under Section 130W of the Penal Code carries an imprisonment of up to 10 years. Dr Lim ordered Maslan and Yen to serve the sentence from the date of their arrest on Dec 25, 2023. When delivering the sentence, the judge said the court considered that both accused were first-time offenders who pleaded guilty early, showed genuine remorse, and in doing so saved the court and all parties' significant time, effort and expense. Addressing Maslan directly, the judge hoped that he would not get involved in such matters again and that this would be the last time he would have to see him in court for a similar case. Earlier, in presenting the facts in Maslan's case, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Datuk Nazran Mohd Sham informed the court that a police superintendent had lodged a police report on Nov 23, 2023 regarding intelligence on 'Geng Upik,' which was involved in dangerous drug trafficking activities. Maslan was arrested by police on Dec 25, 2023, at 2.30am, at an entertainment venue in the town of Koidupan, Penampang, while Nelson Yee was arrested at 6.45am, on Dec 25, 2023 in an apartment here, both on suspicion of being involved in the organised crime group. Investigations revealed by the investigating officer, found that Maslan was identified as a member of 'Geng Upik' and was directly involved in the group's drug trafficking activities between 2015 and Dec 25, 2023. It was also revealed that Maslan played a leading role in the group, coordinating the trafficking of dangerous drugs together with other group members, with the aim of deriving material gain. Meanwhile, in Yen's case, the court heard that investigations revealed the accused had assisted the organised crime group, among other things, by attending their meetings and helping to manage the group's business and financial affairs. Further investigations disclosed that Yen had supported the 'Geng Upik' in advancing the group's interests. The prosecution further informed the court that the investigation also found that 'Geng Upik' had engaged in dangerous drug trafficking in several serious offence cases: Tawau (three) and Manggatal (one). The serious offences in Tawau include: In 2016, an arrest under Section 39B involving an individual who had assisted 'Geng Upik', namely Syafilah Pawawoi, who was convicted and sentenced to 12 years' imprisonment; in Manggatal in 2017 involved an arrest with the seizure of 4.6kg of syabu with evidence indicating that the seized drugs were linked to 'Geng Upik.' In 2020, an arrest involving the seizure of 53kg of syabu with evidence indicating that the seized drugs were linked to 'Geng Upik'; in 2023, an arrest involving an individual involved in assisting 'Geng Upik' under Section 39B, currently undergoing trial at the Tawau High Court. In mitigation, counsel Hamid Ismail, who represented Maslan, applied for a five-year sentence to commence from the date of his arrest, submitting, among other things, that Maslan's guilty plea had saved considerable time for all parties, that he had been a first-time offender, a divorcee with nine children to care for, had regretted his actions, had shown remorse, and had promised not to commit the same offence. Meanwhile, counsel Datuk Ram Singh representing Yen, applied for two years' imprisonment sentence from the date of his arrest, by submitting among others, that Yen had pleaded guilty before the start of the trial, was a first offender, remorseful and would not commit a similar offence and that he was unaware 'Geng Upik' was genuinely involved in drug-related activities. The prosecution pressed the need to consider the public interest and the imposition of a deterrent sentence, given the seriousness of the offence committed by both accused. Maslan and Yen were among 15 individuals charged with committing the offence. However, on March 18 and 20, this year, 10 of them were each sentenced to three years after pleading guilty to the alternative charge of assisting an organised criminal group to further the interest of the group between June 15 and Dec 24, 2023. The alternative charges under Section 130W of the Penal Code were offered by the prosecution to the 10 individuals following the acceptance of their representation letters to the prosecution. The 10 were Mahathir Jibarail, 49, Mohd Faridzul Asmahadi, 32, Mohd Fikri Asme, 29, and Manan Ungok @ Salleh, 52, Mohd Fauzie Rablin, 34, Fazrul Bahar, 33, Shahlan Shah Abdul Samad, 38, Mazlan Mahmud, 49, Alkan Abraham, 36, and Norsyafilah Pawawoi, 28. Meanwhile, the trial dates, which had been fixed for July 15 to 18, were maintained for the three remaining accused — Zulkahar Dusing, 38; former Tawau CID Officer Insp Rahman Burijin, 44; and General Operations Force member Sgt Jaisalfian Jaineh @ Zaini, 45. Together with DPP Nazran were DPPs Lina Hanini Ismail, Siti Hajar Mat Radzi and Nur Ainaa Ridzwan. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
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