Mohamed Anim Atam, 56, who was unrepresented, entered his plea on Aug. 21 before Magistrate A. Shaarmini at the Johor Bahru Magistrates' Court, Bernama reported.

The court ordered his jail term to run from Aug. 18, the day he was arrested, and set a default sentence of three months in prison should he fail to pay the fine.

The charge, framed under Section 298 of Malaysia's Penal Code, accused him of deliberately uttering words insulting Islam with the intention of wounding another person's religious feelings, The Star reported.

The provision carries up to one year in prison, a fine, or both.

The offence took place at about 5 p.m. on July 30, while Mohamed Anim was riding as a passenger from Jalan Tun Razak to Jalan Meldrum in central Johor Bahru.

He described the contents of the Quran as lacking compassion and concerned only with killing, Malay Mail reported, citing the facts of the case presented in court.

The driver, Muhamad Danial Haikal Nadzahakim, 29, overheard the remarks and recorded the conversation, then uploaded a two-minute, 20-second clip to social media.

In the recording, the driver identifies himself as a Muslim, disputes the passenger's characterization of the faith and at one point threatens to put him out of the car, according to Mothership.

The passenger apologizes before leaving the vehicle at the roadside. The video circulated widely and a police report was lodged on July 31.

Mohamed Anim was arrested at about 4:15 p.m. on Aug. 18 at the Sultan Iskandar Building in Bukit Chagar, the customs and immigration complex at the Johor Bahru end of the causeway to Singapore.

Officers from the Criminal Investigation Division of the Johor Bahru South district police headquarters made the arrest with assistance from Singapore police and seized a mobile phone to aid the investigation.

Police said that Singapore authorities handed the man to the Royal Malaysia Police that day, AsiaOne reported.

Seeking leniency, Mohamed Anim told the court he suffered from high blood pressure and was in the middle of divorce proceedings that required him to appear before the Syariah Court in Singapore.