SINGAPORE: Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers on Monday (Feb 17) seized thousands of cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes declared as vegetables in a lorry.
The total duty and Goods and Services Tax (GST) evaded amounted to about S$445,788 and S$36,094 respectively, said ICA in a news release on Friday.
AdvertisementAdvertisementIn the incident, which happened at about 4.40am, officers at Woodlands Checkpoint grew suspicious when they found "anomalies" in the scanned images of a consignment in a Malaysia-registered lorry.
The consignment had been declared as "vegetables" - but when officers carried out further checks, they discovered 5,220 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes hidden inside cardboard boxes.
Duty-unpaid cigarettes hidden inside boxes within a "vegetable" consignment. (Photo: Immigration and Checkpoints Authority)
A total of 5,220 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes were discovered. (Photo: Immigration and Checkpoints Authority)
AdvertisementAdvertisement"Further checks revealed that the 27-year-old Malaysian driver was in possession of a forged Malaysia driving license," said the authority.
He was immediately arrested and the case was referred to Singapore Customs and the Singapore Police Force for investigations.
Let's block ads! (Why?)
More...
The total duty and Goods and Services Tax (GST) evaded amounted to about S$445,788 and S$36,094 respectively, said ICA in a news release on Friday.
AdvertisementAdvertisementIn the incident, which happened at about 4.40am, officers at Woodlands Checkpoint grew suspicious when they found "anomalies" in the scanned images of a consignment in a Malaysia-registered lorry.
The consignment had been declared as "vegetables" - but when officers carried out further checks, they discovered 5,220 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes hidden inside cardboard boxes.
AdvertisementAdvertisement"Further checks revealed that the 27-year-old Malaysian driver was in possession of a forged Malaysia driving license," said the authority.
He was immediately arrested and the case was referred to Singapore Customs and the Singapore Police Force for investigations.
Let's block ads! (Why?)
More...