28 weeks’ jail for man who tried to flee Singapore after getting caught smuggling vapes

SINGAPORE – While he was under investigation for attempting to smuggle more than 20,000 vaping products into Singapore, a Malaysian man tried to abscond by paying a lorry driver to smuggle him out of the country.

Mohamad Izuwan Che Mohd Abd Khoha, 32, was on Aug 28 sentenced to 28 weeks’ jail by a district court after pleading guilty to three charges.

Two of his charges involve illegally importing vaping products into Singapore, and the third charge is over failing to present his passport before leaving the country.

Another two charges of possessing vaping products were taken into consideration for his sentencing.

In July, Izuwan accepted a friend’s offer to smuggle vaping products into Singapore for a sum of RM3,000 (S$900).

Health Sciences Authority (HSA) legal counsel Vishnu Aditya Naidu said the accused did so as he needed money to pay rent for his home and expenses incurred from his car and motorcycle.

On July 17 at around 8am, Izuwan drove a lorry loaded with vapes to Tuas Checkpoint, where Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers stopped the vehicle for checks and the illegal goods were discovered.

Izuwan was arrested, and the illicit products – comprising 8,657 e-cigarette devices and 11,978 e-cigarette pods – were seized.

He was released from custody on the same day while investigations were pending and was instructed to report back to HSA on July 26. His passport was impounded and he was instructed not to leave Singapore.

Afraid he would not be able to return to Malaysia to see his family, Izuwan sought a friend’s help to leave Singapore illegally.

He also went to the Tuas area on July 18 to ask lorry drivers if they were willing to get him out of Singapore illegally. None of them agreed.

On July 19, Izuwan’s friend told him that a yellow lorry would pick him up in Tuas and smuggle him into Malaysia.

The lorry driver, known in court documents as Ramesh, was initially hesitant to do so, but relented when Izuwan offered to pay him RM2,000 for the trip.

Izuwan hid in the empty cargo compartment of the lorry and Ramesh covered him with a canvas sheet.

At Tuas Checkpoint, the accused was caught hiding in the lorry when ICA officers checked the vehicle.

ICA prosecution officer Zhang Hua Wei told the court that there were two aggravating factors in this case. First, Izuwan had enticed Ramesh with cash to aid him in his escape, and second, he had actively looked for drivers to smuggle him out of Singapore.

In mitigation, Izuwan said he is the sole breadwinner of his family, and he has two young sons, aged two and six. He asked for leniency as a first-time offender.

In sentencing him, District Judge Lorraine Ho said Izuwan had brought in a large quantity of vaping products into Singapore for financial gain, and he had fled knowing he was under investigation.

Ramesh’s case is pending before the courts.

For illegally importing vaping products, Izuwan could have been fined up to $10,000 and jailed for up to six months for each offence.

For failing to present his passport before leaving Singapore, he could have been fined up to $1,000 and jailed for up to six months.