KOTA KINABALU, Sept. 20 -- Croatian hiker Mauro Persic, who was fined RM25,000 for trespassing into Kinabalu Park, has denied deliberately entering the mountain without permission or trying to avoid paying the entry fee.

The 46-year-old, who lives in London, said his climb was spontaneous and driven by his desire to explore Mount Kinabalu after seeing its beauty firsthand.

"I did not want to trespass nor avoid paying entry fees, that was the last thing on my mind. All I wanted to do was explore the captivating beauty of Kinabalu the moment I saw it," he said in a Facebook post a day after Malaysia Day.

"As I have done many times before in different places around the globe. I did it on a spur of a moment and did not put enough thought a...