A site engineer was fined S$18,000 yesterday for smuggling in more than 300 singing birds from Johor, three-quarters of which died as a result of their confinement.

Winston Boo Kiang Cheng, 38, was convicted of three counts of contravening the Animals and Birds Act, after he brought in the birds without a Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) licence and causing them unnecessary suffering.

Boo committed the offences on Nov 1 last year, a day after he purchased the birds for RM558 (S$230).

The birds were found hidden in the boot and beneath the rear passenger seat of his car. All 302 birds - 253 Spotted Munia, 48 Oriental White Eye and a Shama - were packed into 11 cages, toilet roll cardboards, a pipe and two plastic trays.

The AVA said the birds were confined in cramped and restrictive conditions. The birds were also not given food and water during their seven-hour journey here.