SINGAPORE: A 23-year-old man was caught on Sunday (May 27) for smuggling a live bird he had hid in a potato chips tube.
The Malaysian national, who had placed the container in the glove compartment of the car he was driving, was caught at Woodlands Checkpoint, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
AdvertisementThe man has been referred to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) and the bird is under AVA's care, ICA said.
Smuggling animals with unknown health statuses may introduce exotic diseases such as avian influenza, ICA said. Those who import animals and live birds without a licence may be fined for up to S$10,000 and/or jailed for up to a year under the Animals and Birds Act.
"Our borders are our first line of defence in safeguarding Singapore’s security," ICA said.
"The ICA will continue to conduct security checks on passengers and vehicles at the checkpoints to prevent attempts to smuggle in undesirable persons, drugs, weapons, explosives and other contrabands," it added.
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