Chances are, you’d have seen pictures of cars and other large vehicles stuffed to the brim with duty-unpaid cigarettes meant to be smuggled into Singapore.
Thankfully, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) intercepts and seizes many of these contraband items before they reach our shores.
The modes of transport that smugglers are employing, however, seem to be changing.
On Tuesday (19 Nov), ICA officers found 2 motorbikes filled completely with duty-unpaid cigarettes in various modified compartments.
In total, over 460 packets of duty-unpaid cigarettes were seized and 2 Malaysian riders were nabbed.
According to the post, ICA intercepted the 2 motorcycles at the Woodlands Checkpoint on Tuesday (19 Nov).
1 of the motorbikes found with duty-unpaid cigarettes
Source
Don’t be fooled by the motorbikes’ unassuming appearances. Take a closer look and you’ll find various modified compartments stuffed with cigarettes.
Even the front fairing was crammed-full of contraband.
2 Malaysian drivers, aged 21 and 22, have been referred to the Singapore Customs for investigations.
In the post, the ICA said that this “method of concealment” is worrying as others may resort to similar methods to smuggle “security items” into Singapore.
The ICA deserves 3 cheers for successfully nabbing the smugglers.
While the seizure isn’t the largest, motorcycles enter our borders in droves daily and are capable of smuggling huge amounts of contraband into Singapore, if not stopped.
We hope this incident serves as an effective deterrence for potential smugglers and also a reminder that our immigration officers are always vigilant as part of their roles as the Guardians of our Borders.
Featured image adapted from Facebook.
On the other hand, some said they'd prefer sitting next to a massive dog than…
Some sustained injuries after jumping from windows, while others starved to death.
A record of more than 553,000 travellers crossed both checkpoints on 13 Dec.
There has been no year-end Covid-19 wave, as had been expected.
The beef was imported without a veterinary health certificate and halal certification.
One fan started queueing as early as 7am.