SINGAPORE: A man whose fiancee was running a dog boarding business conspired to have puppies smuggled across the border and bred dogs for sale.
Eswaran Rajasevran, a 44-year-old Singaporean, was arrested when his accomplice was caught at Tuas Checkpoint with three puppies stuffed in a backpack inside a storage compartment of his motorcycle.
Eswaran was fined S$15,000 (US$11,800) by a court on Wednesday (Feb 4) for offences under the Animals and Birds Act. These include conspiring to import a toy poodle into Singapore from Malaysia and keeping a dog in captivity for sale without a licence.
The court heard that Eswaran's fiancee owned Pawhaus & Dognassium Doggie Daycare, which had only a dog boarding licence and not a pet shop licence.
At about 5.20am on Mar 1, 2025, Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers inspected a Malaysia-registered motorcycle ridden by Rizal Rakesh Abdullah at Tuas Checkpoint.
ICA found three puppies concealed in a backpack and placed within the storage compartment of the motorcycle.
Investigations revealed that Rizal was going to deliver the puppies to Eswaran at 55 Telok Kurau Lorong L, where Pawhaus had its boarding facility.
Eswaran was in charge of the daily operations of Pawhaus, including liaising with Rizal and a Malaysian man he knew as "Jivah".
Eswaran got to know Jivah, a dog breeder and pet shop owner in Malaysia, via online platform TikTok sometime in 2024.
He liaised with Jivah on the number of smuggled animals to be received and arranged to receive the animals from Rizal.
After Rizal was arrested, an inspection was conducted at Pawhaus' premises and eight toy poodles were found. They were either three years or eight weeks old.
The court heard that Eswaran had approached Jivah around March 2024 to buy a toy poodle for S$1,500.
He used this poodle to mate with another poodle he had adopted from a man in Singapore, intending to produce offspring for sale.
Around early January 2025, the mother poodle gave birth to a litter of six puppies.
Eswaran kept them on Pawhaus premises, intending to sell them for at least S$1,000 each. He communicated with a potential buyer in February 2025, agreeing to sell him two puppies for S$1,800 each.
However, the sale did not proceed as Rizal was arrested and the dogs were seized.
The National Parks Board (NParks) prosecutor sought a total fine of between S$17,000 and S$22,000 for Eswaran.
Eswaran's lawyer argued that he was not a "fly by night operator trying to skirt the rules and the law for a quick profit".
"He's in it for the long haul," said the lawyer, adding that Eswaran was working towards getting a licence to be an international dog trainer.
He also wants to be licensed as a commercial dog breeder, said the lawyer.
For keeping a dog in captivity for sale at a place without the required licence, Eswaran could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to S$5,000, or both.
For conspiring to smuggle animals across the border, he could have been jailed for up to 12 months, fined up to S$10,000, or both.
Continue reading...
Eswaran Rajasevran, a 44-year-old Singaporean, was arrested when his accomplice was caught at Tuas Checkpoint with three puppies stuffed in a backpack inside a storage compartment of his motorcycle.
Eswaran was fined S$15,000 (US$11,800) by a court on Wednesday (Feb 4) for offences under the Animals and Birds Act. These include conspiring to import a toy poodle into Singapore from Malaysia and keeping a dog in captivity for sale without a licence.
The court heard that Eswaran's fiancee owned Pawhaus & Dognassium Doggie Daycare, which had only a dog boarding licence and not a pet shop licence.
At about 5.20am on Mar 1, 2025, Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers inspected a Malaysia-registered motorcycle ridden by Rizal Rakesh Abdullah at Tuas Checkpoint.
ICA found three puppies concealed in a backpack and placed within the storage compartment of the motorcycle.
Investigations revealed that Rizal was going to deliver the puppies to Eswaran at 55 Telok Kurau Lorong L, where Pawhaus had its boarding facility.
Eswaran was in charge of the daily operations of Pawhaus, including liaising with Rizal and a Malaysian man he knew as "Jivah".
Eswaran got to know Jivah, a dog breeder and pet shop owner in Malaysia, via online platform TikTok sometime in 2024.
He liaised with Jivah on the number of smuggled animals to be received and arranged to receive the animals from Rizal.
After Rizal was arrested, an inspection was conducted at Pawhaus' premises and eight toy poodles were found. They were either three years or eight weeks old.
The court heard that Eswaran had approached Jivah around March 2024 to buy a toy poodle for S$1,500.
He used this poodle to mate with another poodle he had adopted from a man in Singapore, intending to produce offspring for sale.
Around early January 2025, the mother poodle gave birth to a litter of six puppies.
Eswaran kept them on Pawhaus premises, intending to sell them for at least S$1,000 each. He communicated with a potential buyer in February 2025, agreeing to sell him two puppies for S$1,800 each.
However, the sale did not proceed as Rizal was arrested and the dogs were seized.
The National Parks Board (NParks) prosecutor sought a total fine of between S$17,000 and S$22,000 for Eswaran.
Eswaran's lawyer argued that he was not a "fly by night operator trying to skirt the rules and the law for a quick profit".
"He's in it for the long haul," said the lawyer, adding that Eswaran was working towards getting a licence to be an international dog trainer.
He also wants to be licensed as a commercial dog breeder, said the lawyer.
For keeping a dog in captivity for sale at a place without the required licence, Eswaran could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to S$5,000, or both.
For conspiring to smuggle animals across the border, he could have been jailed for up to 12 months, fined up to S$10,000, or both.
Continue reading...