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Luxury Car Driver Intercepted, Checked and Arrested
The Singaporean luxury car driver might have thought that checkpoint officers would be less suspicious of him if he drove a bigger car. Unfortunately, he found himself Intercepted, Checked and Arrested for attempting to smuggle contraband cigarettes into Singapore.
2. On 27 February 2006 at around 8.25am, an auxiliary police officer stopped the Singapore-registered luxury car for a routine check. In the course of the checks, the officer noticed that there were signs of deliberate concealment on the speaker – there was an additional metal piece obstructing its base. Assisted by a colleague, the officers unscrewed the front of the speaker box. Found concealed in the speaker box were 41 cartons of cigarettes wrapped in newspapers. When interviewed, the 47-year-old Singaporean driver admitted that it was not his first-time offence. He had previous convictions under the Customs Act. He also claimed that he was promised S$12 for each carton of cigarettes successfully smuggled into Singapore. The case has been referred to Singapore Customs for further investigation.
3. The total amount of customs duties and Goods & Services Tax involved is estimated to be $2,886.40 and $184.50 respectively. Upon conviction by the court, first time offenders can be fined up to a maximum of 20 times the amount of duty evaded. For second or subsequent convictions, offenders can be jailed for up to 2 years, as well as being fined. The offenders also face further fines based on the amount of GST evaded.
4. ICA has tightened security checks on passengers and vehicles at the checkpoints to prevent attempts to smuggle in undesirable persons, drugs, weapons, explosives and other contraband. We would like to warn the public to think twice before they attempt to smuggle unlawful goods illegally into Singapore as our officers at the checkpoints maintain a high level of vigilance at all times and are trained to profile potential offenders.
2. On 27 February 2006 at around 8.25am, an auxiliary police officer stopped the Singapore-registered luxury car for a routine check. In the course of the checks, the officer noticed that there were signs of deliberate concealment on the speaker – there was an additional metal piece obstructing its base. Assisted by a colleague, the officers unscrewed the front of the speaker box. Found concealed in the speaker box were 41 cartons of cigarettes wrapped in newspapers. When interviewed, the 47-year-old Singaporean driver admitted that it was not his first-time offence. He had previous convictions under the Customs Act. He also claimed that he was promised S$12 for each carton of cigarettes successfully smuggled into Singapore. The case has been referred to Singapore Customs for further investigation.
3. The total amount of customs duties and Goods & Services Tax involved is estimated to be $2,886.40 and $184.50 respectively. Upon conviction by the court, first time offenders can be fined up to a maximum of 20 times the amount of duty evaded. For second or subsequent convictions, offenders can be jailed for up to 2 years, as well as being fined. The offenders also face further fines based on the amount of GST evaded.
4. ICA has tightened security checks on passengers and vehicles at the checkpoints to prevent attempts to smuggle in undesirable persons, drugs, weapons, explosives and other contraband. We would like to warn the public to think twice before they attempt to smuggle unlawful goods illegally into Singapore as our officers at the checkpoints maintain a high level of vigilance at all times and are trained to profile potential offenders.