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Latest Imports: Fruity Flavoured Cigarettes
A Malaysian man found out for himself that transporting boxes of fruits in a cheery red lorry at the early hours of the morning can also be a heart-stopping experience - especially if he had assumed that the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) was operating at a lower level of vigilance. He was proven wrong of course.
The Cheery Red Lorry
Consignment of Fruits
2. On 6 May 2010 at about 6am, a Malaysian registered lorry, which was declared to be conveying a consignment of nearly 400 cartons of fresh oranges and apples, had arrived at Woodlands Checkpoint to seek clearance. The lorry was directed for a routine check when the keen-eyed ICA officer spotted some anomalies in the scanned images of the goods. Suspecting that the consignment may consist more than the healthy boxes of fruits, he then directed the lorry to the inspection pit for a more thorough check.
3. The officers wasted no time unloading the boxes of fresh fruits and on opening the first few boxes of the consignment, what greeted them first were the cool and aromatic fragrance of zesty oranges and the mellow scent of apples. Could there have been a mistake? Our officers obviously did not think so, and proceeded to unload more boxes of the said consignment. The laborious task only made the fruits of their hard work sweeter when they finally uncovered the first box of apples which was also stashed with 18 cartons of cigarettes. They laboured on and eventually uncovered a total of 5,100 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes stashed in various cartons of fresh fruits.
Fruity Scented Cigarettes Uncovered
4. The estimated street value of the contraband smokes is about half a million dollars and the potential customs duty and GST payable for the cigarettes amounted to S$359,000 and S$32,500 respectively.
5,100 Cartons of Illegal Smokes Busted
5. Preliminary investigation revealed that the 40-year-old Malay driver is employed by a transport company in Kedah. He is paid a basic salary of RM350 and will be paid RM300 for every successful delivery of cargo consignment to Singapore. He was instructed to park the lorry somewhere in Woodlands Centre and await the call from one “Ah Cheng” once he has obtained clearance.
6. The driver, contraband cigarettes, truck and cargo were handed over to the Singapore Customs for further investigations. 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 vehicles used in conveying this contraband will also be liable for forfeiture.
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. The same methods of concealment used by contraband smugglers may be used by terrorists to smuggle arms and explosives to carry out attacks in Singapore.
IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
7 May 2010
The Cheery Red Lorry
Consignment of Fruits
2. On 6 May 2010 at about 6am, a Malaysian registered lorry, which was declared to be conveying a consignment of nearly 400 cartons of fresh oranges and apples, had arrived at Woodlands Checkpoint to seek clearance. The lorry was directed for a routine check when the keen-eyed ICA officer spotted some anomalies in the scanned images of the goods. Suspecting that the consignment may consist more than the healthy boxes of fruits, he then directed the lorry to the inspection pit for a more thorough check.
3. The officers wasted no time unloading the boxes of fresh fruits and on opening the first few boxes of the consignment, what greeted them first were the cool and aromatic fragrance of zesty oranges and the mellow scent of apples. Could there have been a mistake? Our officers obviously did not think so, and proceeded to unload more boxes of the said consignment. The laborious task only made the fruits of their hard work sweeter when they finally uncovered the first box of apples which was also stashed with 18 cartons of cigarettes. They laboured on and eventually uncovered a total of 5,100 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes stashed in various cartons of fresh fruits.
Fruity Scented Cigarettes Uncovered
4. The estimated street value of the contraband smokes is about half a million dollars and the potential customs duty and GST payable for the cigarettes amounted to S$359,000 and S$32,500 respectively.
5,100 Cartons of Illegal Smokes Busted
5. Preliminary investigation revealed that the 40-year-old Malay driver is employed by a transport company in Kedah. He is paid a basic salary of RM350 and will be paid RM300 for every successful delivery of cargo consignment to Singapore. He was instructed to park the lorry somewhere in Woodlands Centre and await the call from one “Ah Cheng” once he has obtained clearance.
6. The driver, contraband cigarettes, truck and cargo were handed over to the Singapore Customs for further investigations. 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 vehicles used in conveying this contraband will also be liable for forfeiture.
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. The same methods of concealment used by contraband smugglers may be used by terrorists to smuggle arms and explosives to carry out attacks in Singapore.
IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
7 May 2010