LIMBANG: A 59-year-old trader was fined RM100,000 by the Sessions Court here after he was found guilty of being in possession of contraband cigarettes worth RM230 with unpaid duties.
State Customs Department director Datuk Sharifah Halimah Tuanku Taha in a statement said the accused, Wong Yong Hock, pleaded guilty before Sessions Court judge Mohd Hafizi Abdul Halim on Feb 14, for offences under Section 135(1)(d) of the Customs Act which are also punishable under Section 135 (1)(v) (aa) of the same Act.
Had he not paid the fine, he would have faced a one-year jail sentence. The offender paid the RM100,000 fine on the same day.
Halimah noted that Wong was sentenced following a raid at a business premises on Feb 11 by Limbang Customs enforcement officers.
She disclosed that during the raid her men found a box containing various brands of contraband cigarettes.
“Further inspection revealed that the accused failed to present any Customs duty papers on the cigarettes,” she said, adding that the seized items will be disposed of under Section 127(1) of the Customs Act 1967.
“This sentence serves as a lesson to all parties who own, distribute and sell contraband cigarettes and liquors, to stop the activities that violate the laws,” she said.
