M Linggeshwaran, 23, PS Tamil Kumaran, 38, G Siva, 33, R Thamilarasan, 33, and S Nagen, 28, made the plea before judge Sharifah Hascindie Syed Omar.

They were jointly charged with committing the robbery when armed with parangs at a property belonging to a 54-year-old man in Pandamaran, Port Klang, at 6.16am on Oct 3 and fleeing with prayer idols worth RM74,500,

The charge, framed under Section 395/397 of the Penal Code, provides for imprisonment of up to 20 years, and the offenders are liable to whipping, upon conviction.

The accused were allowed bail of RM10,000 in one surety each and ordered to report themselves at a nearby police station once a month and to not intimidate witnesses, until disposal of the case.

The court set Jan 8 for mention.

The prosecution was conducted by deputy public prosecutor Annur Athirah Amran.

Lawyer Reenajit Kaur Golen represented Linggeshwaran while counsel SK Loges Kesavan appeared for Nagen and Kumaran, who lost sight of his right eye in an accident in 2021. Fauzi Abdul Samad represented Siva and Thamilarasan.