Man, 32, jailed for smuggling chewing tobacco; first convicted under amended law
SINGAPORE — A 32-year-old man was jailed four weeks on Thursday (July 20) for attempting to smuggle chewing tobacco products – becoming the first person to be convicted of such a crime under the amended tobacco law.
Changes to the Tobacco (Control of Advertisements and Sale) Act, which banned emerging tobacco products, kicked in on Aug 1 last year.
Kavinthiran, a Singaporean, had nearly 5,000 sachets of Hans Chhap Tobacco valued at around S$9,200 hidden in a rented vehicle he was driving.
The sachets contained 55kg of khaini tobacco, a type of chewing tobacco banned for import, distribution and sale in Singapore.
(Photo: Immigration & Checkpoints Authority)
On Jan 3 this year, Kavinthiran drove a rental car from Johor Baru to Woodlands Checkpoint, and was stopped by the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority officers for checks.
A total of 4,585 sachets labelled as Hans Chhap Tobacco were found hidden in various parts of the car, including the rear side panel of the boot and the side door panels. He had rented the vehicle just to bring these prohibited products into Singapore.
Investigations showed that he had worked with an acquaintance in Malaysia to import the banned chewing tobacco into Singapore, and would be paid for a successful delivery.
He could have been fined up to S$10,000, jailed a maximum of six months, or both for a first-time offence.
