Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

3 men nabbed with 5,000 cartons of contraband cigarettes, evaded more than S$500,000 in duties and taxes

SINGAPORE — Three men, aged between 19 and 23, have been arrested after being caught with 5,044 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes and evading duties and Goods and Services Tax (GST) totalling some S$539,910.

The duty-unpaid cigarettes found in the unit during the joint operation on July 5, 2023.

The duty-unpaid cigarettes found in the unit during the joint operation on July 5, 2023.

Follow TODAY on WhatsApp
  • Three men, aged between 19 and 23, have been arrested after being caught with 5,044 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes
  • The duty and Goods and Services Tax (GST) evaded amounted to about $539,910
  • The arrests came during a joint operation on July 5 in an industrial building in the vicinity of Ubi Crescent, said the Singapore Customs and Immigration and Checkpoints Authority on Tuesday (July 11)
  • The duty-unpaid cigarettes were seized and court proceedings against the three men are ongoing

SINGAPORE — Three men, aged between 19 and 23, have been arrested after being caught with 5,044 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes and evading duties and Goods and Services Tax (GST) totalling some S$539,910.

The Singapore Customs and Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said in a statement on Tuesday (July 11) that the arrests came during a joint operation on July 5 in an industrial building in the vicinity of Ubi Crescent.

The agencies said that Singapore Customs officers had monitored a unit that was suspected of being used for storing duty-unpaid cigarettes.

“After a man was seen entering the unit, officers conducted a check and uncovered 2,040 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes packed in brown boxes, and another 3,004 cartons concealed in sofa beds.

“The total duty and GST evaded amounted to about $495,321 and $44,589 respectively,” the authorities said.

The three men were later arrested and all the duty-unpaid cigarettes were seized.

Court proceedings against the trio are ongoing.

Under the Customs Act and the GST Act, the buying, selling, conveying, delivering, storing, keeping, possessing or dealing with duty-unpaid goods are serious offences, Singapore Customs said.

Offenders may face fines up to 40 times the amount of duty and GST evaded, or jailed for up to six years, or both.

“We will continue to conduct security checks at the checkpoints and work with relevant authorities to safeguard our land, air and sea borders against crime and security threats, including smuggling activities and non-compliance with our regulations,” ICA said.

Members of the public with information on smuggling activities or evasion of duty or GST may call the Singapore Customs hotline at 1800-2330000 or email to report these illegal activities at customs_intelligence [at] customs.gov.sg.

Related topics

duty-unpaid cigarettes tax evasion Singapore Customs Immigration and Checkpoints Authority

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to our newsletter for the top features, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.