SINGAPORE: A 38-year-old man who rented a warehouse to store about S$5.2 million (US$3.9 million) worth of vape products was jailed for 10 months and fined S$14,000 on Thursday (Nov 28).
The warehouse at Woodlands Industrial Park was raided by authorities on Apr 24, with the operation resulting in the second-largest seizure of e-vaporisers seen in Singapore.
Toh Wee Leong pleaded guilty to two charges of abetting the possession of about 156,000 vapes and about 253,000 vape pods.
Two charges of importing about 1,500 e-cigarettes and abetting the possession of more than 53,000 heat sticks – another type of tobacco product – were also considered for sentencing.
The court heard that Toh got involved in activities related to the products to pay off gambling debts of about S$80,000.
He was introduced to a man named Chua Wee Ming after seeking help with his debts, and first met Chua at a pub in Malaysia in April or May 2022.
According to Toh, Chua offered to clear his debts if he agreed to smuggle e-cigarettes into Singapore. Toh subsequently tried to import about 1,500 e-cigarettes into Singapore on Sep 17, 2022, but got caught doing so and was arrested.
Chua told Toh that since he had cleared his debts but Toh had not managed to move the e-cigarettes into Singapore, Toh would have to rent a warehouse under his name for Chua to use.
In around April to May 2023, Chua arranged for Toh to meet a property agent who showed him the warehouse. Toh signed a lease for it a few days later.
Toh then sent Chua a video about registering fingerprint access to the warehouse and left the keys to its lock on top of the warehouse's letterbox. He only returned two to three times thereafter, to resolve matters related to utilities.
During investigations, Toh admitted to knowing that the vape products stored in the warehouse were meant for sale.
Vape products found and seized at a warehouse located within Woodlands Industrial Park on Apr 24, 2024. (Photo: Health Sciences Authority)
Vape products found and seized at a warehouse located within Woodlands Industrial Park on Apr 24, 2024. (Photo: Health Sciences Authority)
Operations involving the vape products at the warehouse ran from May 2023 until the raid in April this year.
Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers raided the storage unit after receiving a tip-off that two overstayers were living there.
On Apr 24, when they knocked on its entrance, one of the overstayers opened the door and led them into the warehouse.
The ICA officers detained the two overstayers, who are Thai nationals, and alerted the Health Sciences Authority about the large quantity of vape products in the warehouse.
During investigations, the two overstayers said they worked as packers along with three other Thai nationals.
Their job involved collecting vape products from a vehicle and packing them according to incoming orders, before they were picked up by another man known as Bryan.
They said they were introduced to the job through a group chat on the Line messaging application, and that Bryan brought them into Singapore in early February.
They worked every day from about 1pm to 7pm, and had earned a total of about S$7,800 and S$5,600 respectively by the time they were detained.
The two men also said that they knew the vape products were illegal in Singapore, but they continued in their jobs as they needed the money.
Toh was unable to pay his S$14,000 fine and will be jailed for an additional 28 days in lieu of it, court records showed.
The punishment for abetting the possession of vape products is up to six months in jail, a fine of up to S$10,000, or both.
The maximum penalties are doubled for repeat offenders.
Continue reading...
The warehouse at Woodlands Industrial Park was raided by authorities on Apr 24, with the operation resulting in the second-largest seizure of e-vaporisers seen in Singapore.
Toh Wee Leong pleaded guilty to two charges of abetting the possession of about 156,000 vapes and about 253,000 vape pods.
Two charges of importing about 1,500 e-cigarettes and abetting the possession of more than 53,000 heat sticks – another type of tobacco product – were also considered for sentencing.
The court heard that Toh got involved in activities related to the products to pay off gambling debts of about S$80,000.
He was introduced to a man named Chua Wee Ming after seeking help with his debts, and first met Chua at a pub in Malaysia in April or May 2022.
According to Toh, Chua offered to clear his debts if he agreed to smuggle e-cigarettes into Singapore. Toh subsequently tried to import about 1,500 e-cigarettes into Singapore on Sep 17, 2022, but got caught doing so and was arrested.
Chua told Toh that since he had cleared his debts but Toh had not managed to move the e-cigarettes into Singapore, Toh would have to rent a warehouse under his name for Chua to use.
In around April to May 2023, Chua arranged for Toh to meet a property agent who showed him the warehouse. Toh signed a lease for it a few days later.
Toh then sent Chua a video about registering fingerprint access to the warehouse and left the keys to its lock on top of the warehouse's letterbox. He only returned two to three times thereafter, to resolve matters related to utilities.
During investigations, Toh admitted to knowing that the vape products stored in the warehouse were meant for sale.
Vape products found and seized at a warehouse located within Woodlands Industrial Park on Apr 24, 2024. (Photo: Health Sciences Authority)
Vape products found and seized at a warehouse located within Woodlands Industrial Park on Apr 24, 2024. (Photo: Health Sciences Authority)
Operations involving the vape products at the warehouse ran from May 2023 until the raid in April this year.
Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers raided the storage unit after receiving a tip-off that two overstayers were living there.
On Apr 24, when they knocked on its entrance, one of the overstayers opened the door and led them into the warehouse.
The ICA officers detained the two overstayers, who are Thai nationals, and alerted the Health Sciences Authority about the large quantity of vape products in the warehouse.
During investigations, the two overstayers said they worked as packers along with three other Thai nationals.
Their job involved collecting vape products from a vehicle and packing them according to incoming orders, before they were picked up by another man known as Bryan.
They said they were introduced to the job through a group chat on the Line messaging application, and that Bryan brought them into Singapore in early February.
They worked every day from about 1pm to 7pm, and had earned a total of about S$7,800 and S$5,600 respectively by the time they were detained.
The two men also said that they knew the vape products were illegal in Singapore, but they continued in their jobs as they needed the money.
Toh was unable to pay his S$14,000 fine and will be jailed for an additional 28 days in lieu of it, court records showed.
The punishment for abetting the possession of vape products is up to six months in jail, a fine of up to S$10,000, or both.
The maximum penalties are doubled for repeat offenders.
Continue reading...