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The Driver Who Cemented His Own Fate
Huge stacks of cement and a crane were spotted at the Tuas Checkpoint on an ordinary Tuesday morning. Why would the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers need them? Construction works were underway at the land checkpoint off the western part of Singapore? Read on to find out more …
2. On the morning of 22 March at about 7.20am, a Malaysian-registered lorry arrived at the Tuas Checkpoint with a declared consignment of 720 bags of cement. The lone Indian driver was directed by the ICA officers to the arrival cargo zone for physical inspection after a routine scan showed that there were anomalies in the images. In the course of their checks, the observant officers noticed that the floorboard of the 40-footer lorry was unusually raised. The nervous behaviour of the driver further affirmed the officers’ suspicions that there something might be amiss. Hence, the officers decided to carry out more detailed checks on the lengthy vehicle.
The 40-footer lorry that contained the loot
3. The ICA officers did not have a smooth and uninterrupted course of examination as 720 stacks of cement weighing 36 tonnes lying on the floorboard got in their way. A crane had to be activated to get the tedious job done for the next few hours. With steadfast determination and perserverance, the officers finally offloaded the bulky load of cement before they pried open the floorboard in the presence of the driver.
One by one, the crane removed all 720 bags of cement onboard the lorry
4. True to the officers’ suspicions, contraband cigarettes and chewing tobacco were found stashed underneath the modified compartment of the floorboard. A total of 2,151 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes and 1,053 packets of chewing tobacco were seized. The potential customs duty and GST payable for the contraband cigarettes amount to about S$151,400 and S$14,400 respectively while the potential customs duty and GST payable for the chewing tobacco were about S$56,600 and S$4,000 respectively.
(Clockwise from top left) Modified floorboard; contrabands uncovered from floorboard; duty-unpaid cigarettes; and chewing tobacco
5. During the preliminary investigation, the 21-year-old Malaysian Indian claimed that he was told to pick up the lorry in Johor and meet a man whom he only knew as “Jaya”. Jaya had paid him RM230 to deliver the consignment to Defu Lane, Singapore, and further instructed him to leave the lorry with the client and return later to drive the empty lorry back to Malaysia. The driver, the illegal smokes and the lorry were handed over to the Singapore Customs for further investigations.
6. The smugglers thought the tonnes of cement would deter the checkpoint officers from carrying out their meticulous checks. They had underestimated the ICA officers who were not the least intimidated by the arduous task. The driver had cemented his own fate when he took a gamble with the vigilant ICA officers.
7. For importation of uncustomed goods, upon conviction by the court, first time offenders can be fined up to 20 times the amount of duty evaded and liable to a jail term not exceeding three years. For second or subsequent convictions, offenders can be fined up to 40 times the amount of duty evaded and jailed for up to six years. The offenders also face further fines based on the amount of GST evaded. The vehicle used in conveying the contraband will also be liable for forfeiture.
8. Our borders are our first line of defence in safeguarding Singapore's security. The enhanced security checks are critical to our nation’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.
IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
23 MARCH 2011
2. On the morning of 22 March at about 7.20am, a Malaysian-registered lorry arrived at the Tuas Checkpoint with a declared consignment of 720 bags of cement. The lone Indian driver was directed by the ICA officers to the arrival cargo zone for physical inspection after a routine scan showed that there were anomalies in the images. In the course of their checks, the observant officers noticed that the floorboard of the 40-footer lorry was unusually raised. The nervous behaviour of the driver further affirmed the officers’ suspicions that there something might be amiss. Hence, the officers decided to carry out more detailed checks on the lengthy vehicle.
The 40-footer lorry that contained the loot
3. The ICA officers did not have a smooth and uninterrupted course of examination as 720 stacks of cement weighing 36 tonnes lying on the floorboard got in their way. A crane had to be activated to get the tedious job done for the next few hours. With steadfast determination and perserverance, the officers finally offloaded the bulky load of cement before they pried open the floorboard in the presence of the driver.
One by one, the crane removed all 720 bags of cement onboard the lorry
4. True to the officers’ suspicions, contraband cigarettes and chewing tobacco were found stashed underneath the modified compartment of the floorboard. A total of 2,151 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes and 1,053 packets of chewing tobacco were seized. The potential customs duty and GST payable for the contraband cigarettes amount to about S$151,400 and S$14,400 respectively while the potential customs duty and GST payable for the chewing tobacco were about S$56,600 and S$4,000 respectively.
(Clockwise from top left) Modified floorboard; contrabands uncovered from floorboard; duty-unpaid cigarettes; and chewing tobacco
5. During the preliminary investigation, the 21-year-old Malaysian Indian claimed that he was told to pick up the lorry in Johor and meet a man whom he only knew as “Jaya”. Jaya had paid him RM230 to deliver the consignment to Defu Lane, Singapore, and further instructed him to leave the lorry with the client and return later to drive the empty lorry back to Malaysia. The driver, the illegal smokes and the lorry were handed over to the Singapore Customs for further investigations.
6. The smugglers thought the tonnes of cement would deter the checkpoint officers from carrying out their meticulous checks. They had underestimated the ICA officers who were not the least intimidated by the arduous task. The driver had cemented his own fate when he took a gamble with the vigilant ICA officers.
7. For importation of uncustomed goods, upon conviction by the court, first time offenders can be fined up to 20 times the amount of duty evaded and liable to a jail term not exceeding three years. For second or subsequent convictions, offenders can be fined up to 40 times the amount of duty evaded and jailed for up to six years. The offenders also face further fines based on the amount of GST evaded. The vehicle used in conveying the contraband will also be liable for forfeiture.
8. Our borders are our first line of defence in safeguarding Singapore's security. The enhanced security checks are critical to our nation’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.
IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
23 MARCH 2011