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ICA Officers Foiled Attempt to Smuggle Three Persons Hiding in Secret Compartment into Singapore
On 24 April 2003, ICA officers mounted stepped-up operations at the Woodlands Checkpoint to look out for attempts to smuggle immigration offenders in and out of Singapore. At about 1900 hours, a 29 year-old male Malaysian driving a Malaysian-registered Perudua Rusa van was signalled by the ICA officers to stop for checks at the Arrival Bus Lane. During the search, ICA officers found three persons hiding inside a specially built secret compartment beneath the floorboard behind the back passenger seats of the van. The driver and the three persons were immediately placed under arrest. The van was also seized.
2 Preliminary investigations revealed that the status of the three persons as two from the People's Republic of China (PRC) and one from India. They are aged 35, 44 and 21 years old respectively. The two PRC nationals, one male and one female, were found with valid travel documents but no visas to enter Singapore while the male Indian national did not have any travel document at all.
3 ICA takes a serious view of attempts by foreigners to overstay or enter Singapore illegally. Under the Immigration Act (Cap 133), the penalties for overstaying or illegal entry are a jail term of up to six months plus a minimum of three strokes of the cane.
4 ICA would also like to remind the public that it is an offence to offer shelter and employment to immigration offenders. Homeowners can make use of ICA's online checking system, called "VERIFI" (or Verification of Foreigner Immigration Status) to verify the immigration passes of their prospective tenants. VERIFI can be accessed through ICA's Internet website: http://www.ica.gov.sg and allows users to receive an instantaneous reply on the validity of the immigration passes presented to them. Similarly, MOM has a system to allow the checking on the validity of work passes at its website: http://www.gov.sg/mom. Members of public with information regarding immigration offenders can call ICA at Tel: 1800-391 6150 or contact the Police.
END OF NEWS RELEASE
Immigration & Checkpoints Authority
25 Apr 2003
2 Preliminary investigations revealed that the status of the three persons as two from the People's Republic of China (PRC) and one from India. They are aged 35, 44 and 21 years old respectively. The two PRC nationals, one male and one female, were found with valid travel documents but no visas to enter Singapore while the male Indian national did not have any travel document at all.
3 ICA takes a serious view of attempts by foreigners to overstay or enter Singapore illegally. Under the Immigration Act (Cap 133), the penalties for overstaying or illegal entry are a jail term of up to six months plus a minimum of three strokes of the cane.
4 ICA would also like to remind the public that it is an offence to offer shelter and employment to immigration offenders. Homeowners can make use of ICA's online checking system, called "VERIFI" (or Verification of Foreigner Immigration Status) to verify the immigration passes of their prospective tenants. VERIFI can be accessed through ICA's Internet website: http://www.ica.gov.sg and allows users to receive an instantaneous reply on the validity of the immigration passes presented to them. Similarly, MOM has a system to allow the checking on the validity of work passes at its website: http://www.gov.sg/mom. Members of public with information regarding immigration offenders can call ICA at Tel: 1800-391 6150 or contact the Police.
END OF NEWS RELEASE
Immigration & Checkpoints Authority
25 Apr 2003