4 people arrested, 1,100 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes seized in customs operation
A total of 1,100 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes were seized in the operation. (Photo: Singapore Customs)
SINGAPORE: Three men and a woman have been arrested and 1,100 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes seized during an operation near Waringin Park, Singapore Customs said on Thursday (Jun 30).
During the operation on Tuesday, officers saw boxes being transferred from a Singapore-registered van into a Singapore-registered car parked side by side.
The officers suspected that the boxes contained duty-unpaid cigarettes and moved in to conduct checks on the three men and woman.
They uncovered 150 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes in the car and 950 cartons in the van.
The four suspects - two foreign men, a Singaporean man and a Singaporean woman, all aged between 25 and 42 - were arrested.
The duty-unpaid cigarettes, two vehicles, and S$6,300 in cash found on the two foreign nationals suspected to be linked to duty-unpaid cigarette transactions were seized, said Singapore Customs.
The total duty and Goods and Services Tax (GST) evaded amounted to about $101,000, it added.
Investigations are ongoing.
Buying, selling, conveying, delivering, storing, keeping, having in possession or dealing with duty-unpaid goods are serious offences under the Customs Act and the GST Act, said the agency.
Offenders can be fined up to 40 times the amount of duty and GST evaded, jailed up to six years, or both.
Vehicles used in such offences and proceeds of sales of duty-unpaid cigarettes are also liable to be forfeited.
