A luxury sedan owned by an 18-year-old Singaporean has been forfeited after he was convicted of drug trafficking.
This was because it was determined that he had bought the car using the proceeds of his illegal activities.
Source: Artur Aldyrkhanov on Unsplash. Photo for illustration purposes only.
In a news release on Thursday (14 Nov), the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) said it conducted an anti-drug operation on 27 Sept 2023.
It was targeted at drug transactions conducted through chat applications.
The teenager was arrested that day and the following drugs were found in his luxury sedan:
Source: Singapore Police Force on Facebook. Photo for illustration purposes only.
The teenager was subsequently charged in court for the following offences:
He was also charged with several traffic offences, including driving without a valid driving licence.
On 8 Aug this year, he was found guilty and sentenced to at least 12 months’ detention in a reformative training centre.
He was also disqualified from holding or obtaining all classes of driving licences for a period of two years.
Nine more charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.
After the teenager was sentenced, CNB applied to forfeit his luxury sedan, which had already been seized.
This was because its investigations revealed that the sedan was partially funded by proceeds of his drug trafficking activities.
Under Section 53 of CDSA, it’s an offence for any person to conceal, disguise, convert, transfer, remove from jurisdiction, acquire, possess, or use, the benefits of drug dealing.
Offenders can be punished with up to 10 years in jail and/or fined up to S$500,000.
The court granted CNB’s application, issuing a Forfeiture Order for the luxury sedan on Wednesday (13 Nov).
Mr Ong Pang Thong, the Director of CNB’s Investigation Division, said drug traffickers who derive benefits from illegal drug activities will “face the consequences” no matter what their age.
It doesn’t matter how the drug benefits were used to support their lifestyle — in this case, it was converted to a luxury sedan — he added:
CNB will relentlessly pursue and take enforcement action against all drug trafficking activities and deprive the offenders of their illicit gains.
CNB will also continue to actively pursue and investigate illegal drug activities so that drug offenders don’t benefit from their financial gains derived from drug dealing.
Source: Google Maps
Other drug trafficking suspects have been found with luxury sedans in their possession in recent years.
On 21 Feb 2023, a 32-year-old Singaporean man was arrested from his luxury sedan in the vicinity of Bukit Timah Road, CNB said.
Source: Central Narcotics Bureau
Drugs with an estimated street value of S$182,000 were later seized from his residential unit near Punggol Field.
On 27 July 2022, a 41-year-old man and 34-year-old woman, both Singaporeans, were arrested inside a hotel room in Sentosa, according to CNB.
Drugs were seized from the room, as well as from their hideout located in a private residential enclave in the vicinity of Shenton Way.
A luxury sedan, believed to have been driven by the couple, was also seized.
Source: Central Narcotics Bureau
CNB said at the time that investigations were ongoing into the drug activities of the arrested suspects.
Also read: S$1.4 million worth of drugs seized during raid in Tengah, 3 S’poreans arrested
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Featured image adapted from Source: Artur Aldyrkhanov on Unsplash. Photo for illustration purposes only.
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