By P Prem Kumar
KUALA LUMPUR
Two men -- a father and son -- have been sentenced to 30 years in jail, after being found guilty of planning a Daesh-influenced terror attack in Malaysia, according to local media.
The Star reported Wednesday that the High Court had ruled that Murad Halimmuddin Hassan, 49, was a follower of Daesh in Syria, and had returned as a spiritual leader to his home country in an effort to spread the ideology and recruit locals to join the militant group.
Hassan and son Abu Daud Murad Halimmuddin, 25, were sentenced to imprisonment terms of 18 and 12 years, respectively by the Court on Tuesday.
While Hassan plotted a terror attack in Malaysia from overseas, Halimmuddin helped to coordinate and plan these activities locally, according to the judgment.
The two were among six individuals detained April 5 for allegedly promoting terrorism in Malaysia.
They were charged April 30 with promoting an act of violence in Malaysia, a crime under the Penal Code.
In April, Malaysia arrested more than 100 people ahead of the 26th ASEAN Summit -- all suspected of connections to Daesh.
The country passed a controversial anti-terrorism bill in April, in a bid to contain Daesh and other terrorism-related ideologies.
The Prevention of Terrorism Act includes a clause that reintroduces detention without trial, three years after it was revoked.
