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975 Cartons of Duty-upaid Cigarettes Recovered as Cigarette Smuggling Syndicate Smashed
On 29 Nov 2005, acting on information received, officers from the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) smashed a cigarette smuggling syndicate and arrested five persons involved in the distribution and sale of duty-unpaid cigarettes. A total of 975 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes were also recovered.
2 At about 2000 hrs, ICA officers were observing four foreigners waiting along Guillemard Road when a Singapore-registered van stopped along the road. One of the four foreigners waiting nearby flagged down a taxi. The taxi came back after 10 minutes and stopped near the van. At this point, the other three foreigners approached the van and started to transfer a box from the van to the taxi. Our ICA officers sprang into action and moved in quickly. The van driver, a Singaporean, tried to escape on foot but was swiftly caught by our officers. The other four persons (two Malaysians and two PRC nationals) were also arrested. A total of 975 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes were recovered from the van and taxi.
3 Preliminary investigations revealed that the two male Malaysians (aged 23 and 27) will distribute the duty-unpaid cigarettes to the two male PRC nationals (aged 25 and 37) who act as the runners for the delivery and sale of the cigarettes using the van driven by the 32-year-old male Chinese Singaporean.
4 The total amount of customs duties and Goods & Services Tax involved are estimated to be S$68,600 and S$4,400 respectively. The estimated market value is S$87,800. The case was referred to Singapore Customs for further investigation.
5 Storing, possession, conveying or dealing with any contraband cigarettes are serious offences under the Customs Act. Singapore Customs takes a serious view of any attempt to evade duty and tax and will not hesitate to prosecute offenders in court. 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.
END OF NEWS RELEASE
30 Nov 2005
2 At about 2000 hrs, ICA officers were observing four foreigners waiting along Guillemard Road when a Singapore-registered van stopped along the road. One of the four foreigners waiting nearby flagged down a taxi. The taxi came back after 10 minutes and stopped near the van. At this point, the other three foreigners approached the van and started to transfer a box from the van to the taxi. Our ICA officers sprang into action and moved in quickly. The van driver, a Singaporean, tried to escape on foot but was swiftly caught by our officers. The other four persons (two Malaysians and two PRC nationals) were also arrested. A total of 975 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes were recovered from the van and taxi.
3 Preliminary investigations revealed that the two male Malaysians (aged 23 and 27) will distribute the duty-unpaid cigarettes to the two male PRC nationals (aged 25 and 37) who act as the runners for the delivery and sale of the cigarettes using the van driven by the 32-year-old male Chinese Singaporean.
4 The total amount of customs duties and Goods & Services Tax involved are estimated to be S$68,600 and S$4,400 respectively. The estimated market value is S$87,800. The case was referred to Singapore Customs for further investigation.
5 Storing, possession, conveying or dealing with any contraband cigarettes are serious offences under the Customs Act. Singapore Customs takes a serious view of any attempt to evade duty and tax and will not hesitate to prosecute offenders in court. 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.
END OF NEWS RELEASE
30 Nov 2005