SINGAPORE: A Malaysian motorcyclist was caught with 1,169 packets of chewing tobacco in his shoes and other belongings at Woodlands Checkpoint early on Thursday (Feb 7) morning, said the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA).
The 50-year-old man was stopped by ICA officers for further checks at about 4.45am on Thursday, the authority said in a Facebook post.
A search revealed the contraband concealed inside his shoes, raincoat bag, haversack and the motorcycle’s carrier box.
Hundreds of chewing tobacco packets were discovered. (Photo: Facebook / Immigration & Checkpoints Authority)
Packets were found concealed inside the man’s shoes, raincoat bag, haversack and the motorcycle’s carrier box. (Photo: Facebook / Immigration & Checkpoints Authority)
The case has been referred to the Health Sciences Authority.
“Our borders are our first line of defence in safeguarding Singapore’s security,” ICA said.
“The ICA will continue to conduct security checks on passengers and vehicles at the checkpoints to prevent attempts to smuggle in undesirable persons, drugs, weapons, explosives and other contrabands.”
The incident comes nearly two weeks after two Malaysians were arrested for attempting to smuggle contraband cigarettes through Woodlands Checkpoint.
In one of the cases, officers found 460 packets of cigarettes hidden in a vehicle’s modified fuel tank. For the second incident, 30 cartons of cigarettes were found in the speaker compartment of a car boot.
