Former company director fined $109,000 for customs offences
In 2014, a former director of freight forwarding company Akarui provided incorrect information to a declaring agent.
The information was about the port of discharge for the export of three shipments of cigarettes and other tobacco products.
Based on the information provided by him, the declaring agent made three incorrect declarations to Singapore Customs.
This was one of the offences for which Lim Boon Kheng, 52, was fined $109,000 last Friday.
If he does not pay it, he will be jailed 95 weeks and 45 days.
Lim was sentenced for making incorrect declarations and causing incorrect declarations to be made to Singapore Customs, and breaching a condition imposed on permits issued by Singapore Customs.
Between 2016 and 2017, he had also knowingly declared incorrect details to Singapore Customs in 13 permit applications for the transhipment of liquor and tobacco products through Singapore.
Lim had also breached a Customs permit condition on 10 occasions when he stored dutiable liquor and tobacco products in the Keppel Free Trade Zone after removing them from a licensed warehouse, instead of exporting them.
Lim pleaded guilty to 26 charges and another 44 charges were taken into consideration in the sentencing.
A total of 186,817 cartons of cigarettes, 25,662kg of tobacco products and 57,464 bottles of liquor were seized and ordered to be forfeited by the court.
WARNING
Assistant Director-General (Intelligence & Investigation) Yeo Sew Meng said: "(Freight forwarders) should submit complete and accurate information when making permit declarations and comply with all conditions imposed on the approved permits."
Under the Customs Act, any person who makes any declaration which is untrue, incorrect or incomplete can receive a maximum fine of $10,000, or the equivalent of the amount of the customs duty, excise duty or tax payable, whichever is the greater amount, or jailed up to 12 months, or both.
Anyone who breaches any condition and restriction for which a licence or permit is granted can receive a fine of up to $5,000.
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