Singapore Customs said on Friday that they launched a three-day long operation and arrested a total of 152 alleged offenders for duty-unpaid cigarettes.
The operation was conducted between Monday, September 10 and Thursday, September 13. No raids took place on the day of September 12. These search operations were carried out in commercial and industrial areas, as well as in housing estates and a foreign workers' dormitory
The agency also stated that those suspects were issued with composition sums that ranged from S$500 to S$1,200, with about 170 packets of seized contraband cigarettes.
In a Facebook post by the agency, they said that the Singapore Police Force and dormitory operator supported this operation. Syvester Henry, Operations Manager of S11 Granuity Management Pte Ltd, whose dormitory was involved in the second day of the operation said that "We are committed to working alongside Singapore Customs and we appreciate their strong support and collaboration in taking a strong stand against the possession of contraband items, which are not permitted in our dormitory and in Singapore."
The social media post also stated that the composition sum for a first-time offender who has up to one packet of contraband cigarettes in his possession is S$500. In addition, it also said, the offender will face penalties if he is found with more than one packet of duty-unpaid cigarettes and/or if he is a repeat offender.
However, at the end of the post the agency asked people that if anyone has information on smuggling activities or evasion of Customs duty or GST, then they can call the Singapore Customs hotline on 1800-2330000, email customs_intelligence@customs.gov.sg or use the Customs@SG mobile app (which can be downloaded from the Apple Store or Google Play) to report the illegal activity.
