SINGAPORE: Four men have been arrested for buying and selling duty-unpaid liquor via the WeChat mobile app, Singapore Customs reported on Wednesday (Oct 31).
The four men were arrested in a series of raids in various parts of Singapore from Oct 16 to Oct 23 this year.
The first man, 39-year-old Guo Xu, was arrested in Woodlands Avenue 4 on Oct 16 by Singapore Customs officers while he was delivering seven bottles of duty-unpaid liquor to a customer.
Seven bottles of duty-unpaid liquor were found on the passenger seat of the cement truck that Guo was driving. (Photo: Singapore Customs)
The officers found the bottles of liquor on the passenger seat of the cement truck Guo was driving, with the duty and Goods and Services Tax (GST) evaded amounting to about S$695 and S$68 respectively. Guo was later sentenced to a S$7,500 fine by the State Courts.
The second man was arrested at the void deck of an HDB block in Woodlands Avenue 6 on Oct 19. The man, whose court proceedings are still ongoing, had arranged to meet with a buyer when officers found six bottles of duty-unpaid liquor in his haversack and plastic bag.
He was later found to have stored another 45 bottles in a cupboard at a hair salon in Geylang Road.
Singapore Customs officers found six bottles of duty-unpaid liquor in the haversack and plastic bag of a man during an operation on Oct 19, 2018. (Photo: Singapore Customs)
A follow-up search at a hair salon in Geylang Road uncovered another 45 bottles. (Photo: Singapore Customs)
Zhu Fuzeng, 28, was arrested in an HDB flat in St George’s Road on the morning of Oct 23 when officers found 30 bottles of duty-unpaid liquor in his room, with duty and GST evaded amounting to S$3,744 and S$350.
Zhu, who had intended to sell the liquor to buyers via WeChat, was sentenced to a S$40,000 fine, or in default 100 days’ imprisonment.
A WeChat conversation between Zhu and a buyer. (Photo: Singapore Customs)
The fourth man was arrested on the night of Oct 23 after officers found him carrying a box containing 12 bottles of liquor at the void deck of a HDB block at Hougang Avenue 3.
Another 54 bottles were found in a nearby HDB rental flat, as well as another bottle in the man’s dormitory in Hougang Avenue 7. Court proceedings are under way for the man.
A total of 67 bottles of duty-unpaid liquor were seized in the operation at Hougang Avenue 3 on Oct 23, 2018. (Photo: Singapore Customs)
Under the Customs Act, any person who is guilty of storing, keeping, in possession and dealing with dutiable goods with the intention to defraud the Government of any duty and GST will be liable on conviction to a fine of up to 20 times the amount of duty and GST evaded.
