SINGAPORE: A Malaysian man carrying 253 cartons of contraband cigarettes in his car tried to evade detection at the last minute at Woodlands Checkpoint, telling Singapore authorities his car had “broken down”.
In a media release on Monday (Dec 28), the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said the driver of the car approached officers at the arrival check area of the checkpoint on Sunday and requested to make a U-turn back to Malaysia instead of entering Singapore. The 25-year-old driver who was accompanied by a 22-year-old female Malaysian passenger at the time.
ICA officers conducted a check on the vehicle after sensing something was amiss. They found the contraband cigarettes hidden in the spare tyre in the car boot, the engine compartment, front and rear bumpers, door panels, modified floor boards and under the passenger seats.
The potential duty and Goods and Services Tax (GST) evaded amounts to about S$19,630 and S$1,870 respectively, ICA said. The driver, the female passenger, the seized cigarettes and the vehicle were handed over to the Singapore Customs for investigations.
