By Khushwant Singh
IF THE 1,962 bottles of duty-unpaid liquor were smuggled out of
the Keppel Distripark undetected on Aug 4, a trader could have made
a profit of $70,000 by selling them on the open market.
Thanks to a whistle-blower, Jasbindar Singh was nabbed and the
40-year-old was fined a total of $500,000 on Monday for evading
duty and the goods and services tax (GST) on the contraband.
A charge of filing a false declaration about the shipment was
taken into consideration by District Judge John Ng in
sentencing.
A district court heard that the Immigration and Checkpoints
Authority received a tip-off and its officers were alerted to watch
out for a certain lorry. At about 4.10pm on Aug 4, Singh was seen
sitting beside the driver of the lorry at the checkpoint for
vehicles leaving the Keppel Distripark.
Singh produced a cargo clearance permit for 150 bundles of rags
and 3.5 tonnes of scrap metal to be taken out. However, a check
revealed no scrap metal but nearly 2,000 bottles of bottles of
premium liquor. These included Chivas Regal and Johnnie Walker
whiskies, Jack Daniels bourbon, Absolut vodka and Jose Cuervo
tequila.
Asking the court to impose a lenient sentence, Singh's lawyer
Christopher Bridges said that his client suffered a heart attack
two years ago and chalked up a hefty medical bill which he was
paying in instalments since. He also had to support his wife, a
housewife, and two children, aged seven and eight, on a monthly
salary of $3,000 and had resorted to crime because of financial
woes, the lawyer added.