Kimberly Spykerman Straits Times 8 Sep 10;
AN INDONESIAN man was busted on Sunday afternoon at the Singapore Cruise Centre for attempting to smuggle in birds and dead ant larvae when he did not have a permit to do so. Their intended destination was a bird shop in Telok Blangah.
The 49-year-old tourist was stopped at the arrival hall by officers from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) when he seemed visibly flustered after being directed to undergo checks on his hand luggage.
Opening the heavy cardboard boxes, officers found 16kg of dead ant larvae in eight pallets wrapped in newspaper.
Ant larvae are a controlled item and cannot be imported without a permit. Dead ant larvae are usually used to feed birds.
The sound of faint chirping then drew the officers' attention to the man's sling bag.
Inside were 11 live birds stuffed into small boxes pierced with holes. They included five mata putehs, three shamas, two flycatchers and one leaf bird. A permit must also be obtained to import birds.
The man admitted to trying to smuggle in the items and was referred to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) for further investigations.
According to the ICA, smuggling of plants, animals and food has gone up by 44 per cent to 3,900 in the first six months of the year, from 2,700 over the same period of time last year.
Overall, contraband smuggling arrests in the first half of the year have peaked at 33,100, a record high for any six-month period.
Importing live birds without an AVA permit is a violation of the Animals and Birds Act, for which the man could be jailed a year and fined $10,000. For importing the dead ant larvae without an AVA permit, which is an offence under the Plant Importation Rules, he could be jailed three years and fined $10,000.
ICA thwarts man's bird-smuggling plans
Channel NewsAsia 7 Sep 10;
SINGAPORE: The Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers thwarted a man's plan to smuggle birds using his sling bag.
ICA officers on Sunday inspected hand-carried boxes of an Indonesian traveller when they thought they heard faint chirping.
Further inspection showed the 49-year-old man's sling bag had 11 birds peering through the several small boxes they were in.
Officers also found 16 kilogrammes of ant larvae.
The Indonesian claimed he intended to sell the contraband items to a bird shop in Telok Blangah and has been referred to the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) for investigations.
ICA said the importation of live birds without an AVA permit is a violation of the Animals and Birds Act, which carries a maximum penalty of S$10,000 and/or imprisonment of up to one year.
-CNA/wk
