Man arrested over 1,550 cartons of contraband cigarettes

A 25-year-old Singaporean man was arrested on July 3 following a Singapore Customs operation in Jurong West and Bukit Batok, in which 1,550 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes were seized.

In a statement on July 9, the government agency said the cigarette duties and taxes evaded amounted to an estimated sum of $167,893.

Custom officials intercepted the man in Jurong West Street 61. He then led officers to a Singapore-registered van at a carpark in Bukit Batok Street 25, where 1,550 cartons of contraband cigarettes were found in the vehicle's cargo compartment.

Subsequent investigations found that the suspect had allegedly been approached by an unidentified person to collect and deliver the cigarettes, Singapore Customs said.

Court proceedings are under way.

Offenders can be fined up to 40 times the amount of duty and goods and services tax evaded, jailed for up to six years, or both. Vehicles used in committing such offences can be forfeited.