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Killing Two Boats with One Storm
The weather forecast for the week: islandwide heavy showers and flash floods. Indeed, it had been raining cats and dogs almost every day. However, the wet season did not dampen the smugglers’ spirits nor stop the Home Team officers from keeping our borders safe and secure even as the sky turned dark.
2. On 11 October 2011 at about 7.15pm, officers from the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) Anti-Smuggling Team (AST) led a group of Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) and Police Coast Guard (PCG) officers in a routine joint operation at the Jurong River area. The officers were inspecting random vessels and crew for any suspicious activities after a heavy thunderstorm. In the course of the checks, the AST officers observed that the four crew members on board an Indonesian wooden vessel, berthed at Jurong Wharf, were behaving suspiciously. A few of them also answered nervously when questioned by the officers. Sensing something fishy, the meticulous officers decided to conduct a thorough search of the vessel.
The two innocuous-looking boats
3. The officers discovered 1,375 cartons of assorted brands of duty-unpaid cigarettes wrapped in black plastic when they combed the engine room. Soon after the stash was uncovered, a second Indonesian wooden vessel was spotted nearby. Just as the four crew members were attempting to pull alongside the first vessel, they saw the officers and tried to steer away. Unfortunately for them, the ICA vessel reacted swiftly and before they knew it, they were already intercepted by the authorities.
4. While examining the second vessel, the vigilant AST officers detected a secret compartment in the engine room, thanks to their eyes for details. A search of the room revealed a total of 1,164 cartons of contraband cigarettes, also wrapped in black plastic. All the eight crew members of the two boats were immediately arrested.
Contrabands wrapped in black plastic and stashed in secret compartment in the engine room
5. During preliminary investigations, the male Indonesians, aged between 23 and 41 years old, admitted that they had agreed to help a man by the name of ‘Andi’ from Batam to transport the cigarettes from Batam to Singapore. They were promised between S$100 and S$150 each for helping to smuggle the contrabands for ‘Andi’.
6. All the eight men and seized exhibits were handed over to the Singapore Customs (SC) for further investigation. Both boats, each weighing a Gross Registered Tonnage of six tones, will also be handed over to the SC eventually. The total potential Customs duty payable, GST and value of the 2,539 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes seized from the two vessels were estimated at S$221,150, S$19,800 and S$282,800 respectively.
Duty-unpaid cigarettes seized from the first boat (on left) and second boat (on right)
7. The weather forecast for next week should still be showers and floods. The smugglers may be saving their loots for the rainy days, but the Home Team officers will always be watching them closely and ready to storm into their boats anytime.
8. Buying, selling, conveying, delivering, storing, keeping, having in possession or dealing with duty-unpaid goods are serious offences under the Customs Act and the GST Act. Offenders will be severely dealt with. Repeat offenders can be fined up to 40 times the amount of duty and GST evaded and/or jailed for up to six years. For every packet of illegal cigarettes, buyers may face a composition sum of at least $500.
9. Our borders are our first line of defence in safeguarding Singapore's security. We have tightened our security checks on passengers and vehicles at the checkpoints to prevent attempts to smuggle in undesirable persons, drugs, weapons, explosives and other contrabands. The same methods of concealment used by contraband smugglers may be used by terrorists to smuggle arms and explosives to carry out more sinister attacks in Singapore. The enhanced security checks are critical to our nation’s security.
IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
13 OCTOBER 2011
2. On 11 October 2011 at about 7.15pm, officers from the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) Anti-Smuggling Team (AST) led a group of Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) and Police Coast Guard (PCG) officers in a routine joint operation at the Jurong River area. The officers were inspecting random vessels and crew for any suspicious activities after a heavy thunderstorm. In the course of the checks, the AST officers observed that the four crew members on board an Indonesian wooden vessel, berthed at Jurong Wharf, were behaving suspiciously. A few of them also answered nervously when questioned by the officers. Sensing something fishy, the meticulous officers decided to conduct a thorough search of the vessel.
The two innocuous-looking boats
3. The officers discovered 1,375 cartons of assorted brands of duty-unpaid cigarettes wrapped in black plastic when they combed the engine room. Soon after the stash was uncovered, a second Indonesian wooden vessel was spotted nearby. Just as the four crew members were attempting to pull alongside the first vessel, they saw the officers and tried to steer away. Unfortunately for them, the ICA vessel reacted swiftly and before they knew it, they were already intercepted by the authorities.
4. While examining the second vessel, the vigilant AST officers detected a secret compartment in the engine room, thanks to their eyes for details. A search of the room revealed a total of 1,164 cartons of contraband cigarettes, also wrapped in black plastic. All the eight crew members of the two boats were immediately arrested.
Contrabands wrapped in black plastic and stashed in secret compartment in the engine room
5. During preliminary investigations, the male Indonesians, aged between 23 and 41 years old, admitted that they had agreed to help a man by the name of ‘Andi’ from Batam to transport the cigarettes from Batam to Singapore. They were promised between S$100 and S$150 each for helping to smuggle the contrabands for ‘Andi’.
6. All the eight men and seized exhibits were handed over to the Singapore Customs (SC) for further investigation. Both boats, each weighing a Gross Registered Tonnage of six tones, will also be handed over to the SC eventually. The total potential Customs duty payable, GST and value of the 2,539 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes seized from the two vessels were estimated at S$221,150, S$19,800 and S$282,800 respectively.
Duty-unpaid cigarettes seized from the first boat (on left) and second boat (on right)
7. The weather forecast for next week should still be showers and floods. The smugglers may be saving their loots for the rainy days, but the Home Team officers will always be watching them closely and ready to storm into their boats anytime.
8. Buying, selling, conveying, delivering, storing, keeping, having in possession or dealing with duty-unpaid goods are serious offences under the Customs Act and the GST Act. Offenders will be severely dealt with. Repeat offenders can be fined up to 40 times the amount of duty and GST evaded and/or jailed for up to six years. For every packet of illegal cigarettes, buyers may face a composition sum of at least $500.
9. Our borders are our first line of defence in safeguarding Singapore's security. We have tightened our security checks on passengers and vehicles at the checkpoints to prevent attempts to smuggle in undesirable persons, drugs, weapons, explosives and other contrabands. The same methods of concealment used by contraband smugglers may be used by terrorists to smuggle arms and explosives to carry out more sinister attacks in Singapore. The enhanced security checks are critical to our nation’s security.
IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
13 OCTOBER 2011