Barely a fortnight ago, we heard about two attempts by drivers to abet the illegal departure of a Bangladeshi national and an Indian national by hiding them in their car boot. The following week, even a pregnant woman attempted to sneak a Chinese national out of Singapore. Financial difficulties had driven two of the three abettors into the arms of the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) at the borders. With the World Cup fever lingering in the air, big losses in illegal soccer betting have pushed yet another Malaysian to smuggle a Bangladeshi national out of Singapore, making it four attempts in the last fortnight and a fifth in the past month at Woodlands Checkpoint!

2 On 13 July 2010 at around 10pm, a Malaysia-registered saloon car pulled into the Woodlands Checkpoint for departure clearance. The lone Malaysian Chinese driver was directed by ICA officers to the inspection area for a routine check after immigration clearance. At the inspection area, the officers noticed that the young driver appeared tense and his uneasiness grew as the officers begun to search the interior of the car. Knowing that these were the traits portrayed by some smugglers in the past, the officers carried out a meticulous search through every nooks and crannies of the car.

3 In the course of the search, the officers heard some noises coming from the rear seat compartment. They opened the car boot to find a man lying prone in the otherwise empty car boot, sweating profusely. The driver and his ‘illegal passenger’ were immediately placed under arrest.

        

Vehicle used for the commission of the offence                 Game is over, buddy!



The ‘illegal passenger’

4 The ‘illegal passenger’ was later established to be 35-year old Bangladeshi national, Hashem Mir, who admitted to have overstayed in Singapore. The unemployed 24-year-old Malaysian driver had also admitted to abetting the illegal departure of Hashem. He claimed that he had incurred a debt of RM4,000 making illegal soccer bets. Without a means to pay up, he succumbed to the bookie’s offer to smuggle immigration offender out of Singapore for a RM500 reduction of his debt. On 13 July, he was notified to convey the Bangladeshi out of Singapore. The two met near the Woodlands Centre and drove to a secluded area where the latter was asked to hide inside the car boot before heading for Woodlands Checkpoint.

5 Hashem claimed that his passport had been taken away by an agent after his arrival in January 2010. Stranded without a passport, he job-hopped to make ends meet, but decided to return home after months of drifting from jobs to jobs aimlessly. He was approached by an unknown Chinese man who arranged for his illegal departure for a fee of S$1,000. Hashem was charged in Court on 15 July and was sentenced to six weeks jail and four strokes of the cane.

6 The vehicle used in the commission of the offences has been detained and is liable for forfeiture. The ICA takes a serious view of attempts by foreigners who overstay, enter or depart 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, while the penalties for illegal departure is a fine of up to $2,000, a jail term of up to six months, or both.

7 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
16 JULY 2010