SINGAPORE: A 42-year-old man was arrested for his suspected involvement in importing replica guns and magazines, said the police on Wednesday (Mar 15).
Officers from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) discovered a shipment of replica guns intended for delivery in Singapore on Monday after detecting anomalies in the scanned images of an import container at Tuas Port.
The shipment, which had no licence, contained 20 replica guns and 54 magazines.
The case was classified as a breach of the Regulation of Imports and Exports Regulation and was referred to the police for investigations.
Through follow-up investigations, officers discovered that the shipment was intended to be delivered to the 42-year-old man and arrested him on Monday.
Two replica guns were also seized during his arrest, said the police.
A 61-year-old woman was also allegedly found to be involved in the operation, said the police, adding that she was also believed to have assisted to import similar items on previous occasions.
Another two replica guns were seized from the woman.
Police investigations are ongoing.
Replica toy guns are controlled items under the Regulation of Imports and Exports Act.
First offenders will be fined up to S$100,000 or three times the value of the goods in respect of which the offence was committed, whichever is greater. They may also be jailed for up to two years, or both.
“Items such as replica toy guns may be deemed as offensive weapons depending on the circumstances in which they are found,” said the police.
“If the person carrying the item is unable to provide a reasonable explanation for the item, the person may also be liable for an offence under the Corrosive and Explosive Substances and Offensive Weapons Act 1958.”
