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Touts sell illegal cigarettes at monsoon drain
They feel new spot at Yew Tee is safe; buyers risk heavy fines to get cigs at half price
By Special Correspondent
April 14, 2009
BUSINESS AS USUAL: The peddlers were initially shocked by this woman, but continued packing cigarettes into plastic bags.
THEY believe it is the safest place to sell contraband cigarettes.
A narrow path beside a storm drain at Yew Tee industrial estate has been used as a makeshift stall by contraband cigarette peddlers.
One tout said in Bahasa Indonesia: 'If there is a raid, we will see it coming long before they can catch us. We will have enough time to run.'
The spot is somewhat isolated, far from homes, and few residents go there.
There are some shops catering mostly to foreign workers.
Those who frequent the area are mostly factory workers - and those who come just to buy the smuggled cigarettes.
The illegal cigarette peddler, in his 20s, spoke to this reporter on Wednesday evening after we showed an interest in buying his wares.
A peddler selling his wares to a buyer from behind the fence.
From across a fence, he flashed several loose packets of duty-unpaid cigarettes in a red plastic bag.
At $5 for a packet of 20 sticks, it was almost half the price of a packet of duty-paid cigarettes sold at licensed outlets.
When I had asked for a brand which he did not have, he told me to wait while he ran to others standing 20m away.
When he returned, the man, who claimed to be a native of Flores, east of Java, said the menthol cigarettes I had asked for were sold out.
Still, he insisted the menthol cigarettes he sold were better.
I walked away and sat at a nearby coffee shop.
The same man persistently gestured for me to come over to the other side of the fence.
To do that, I had to walk through a gate.
He tried to entice me with a better deal - two packets for $8.
No 'hantu'
BUYERS WANTED: The peddlers pace up and down a bridge above the storm drain, in search of buyers. They sit and wait at a spot near the fence on the right.
I told him it was not a good idea for me to be talking to him, for fear of a raid.
He assured me there was no 'hantu' (ghost in Malay, but he was referring to the authorities) in the area.
Pointing to the fence, he said the customs officers would have to scale the fence to reach him.
If the authorities were to come from the path along the drain, they would be spotted 100m away.
Added the peddler confidently: 'We have learned from those previously caught selling (contraband cigarettes) by the roadside (Woodlands Road). They were too visible and easily surrounded. This spot is almost hidden from view.'
Indeed, two provision shops less than 5m from the peddlers 'stall' appeared to have no idea of what was happening nearby.
A shop assistant at one, New Star Departmental Co, said: 'It's not my business to worry what happens behind my shop. My boss will fire me if I kaypoh (be a busybody) too much.'
Despite the obscure location, smokers came in droves to buy the illegal cigarettes.
They stop their vehicles and pretend to use the ATM machine or mail box, before making a detour towards the 2m-tall fence.
A few hand gestures, and the transaction is over in 30 seconds.
The cigarettes were pushed through the holes in the fence or spots where the fence had been forced down.
On Tuesday, as many as 15 buyers approached the 11 cigarette touts within an hour.
There seemed to be a 'central pool' where the cigarettes were kept.
Added the tout from Flores: 'If we get caught with a small amount of cigarettes, our fine will be lighter.'
At 2.30pm, the group was initially spooked by a woman who seemed to be scolding them.
But the peddlers quickly ignored the woman and continued packing cigarettes into plastic bags.
In between customers, some peddlers slept on pieces of cardboard, with their plastic bags of smokes between their legs.
Others talked on their handphones or climbed the damaged fence for a quick snack at the nearby shop.
Touts were also seen entering the drain to ease themselves or wash up.
When it rained late Tuesday afternoon, the touts were prepared with big umbrellas.
'Most will get caught'
But the law always catches up with the touts sooner or later, said one pump attendant.
Said Mr Wong, who works at a nearby petrol station: 'For three years I'm used to seeing them play the game of hide-and-seek.
'Sure, some will escape, but most will get caught. I don't know why they never learn that the chances of being arrested are high, especially in Yew Tee.'
The truth is, times will be harder if one is caught buying contraband cigarettes.
Customs officers said they are aware of the situation and have been monitoring the illegal sales of duty-unpaid cigarettes in the Yew Tee area. Their aim is to 'kill the demand'.
Since the beginning of this year, more than 780,000 packets of duty-unpaid cigarettes have been seized.
Touts sell illegal cigarettes at monsoon drain
They feel new spot at Yew Tee is safe; buyers risk heavy fines to get cigs at half price
By Special Correspondent
April 14, 2009
BUSINESS AS USUAL: The peddlers were initially shocked by this woman, but continued packing cigarettes into plastic bags.
THEY believe it is the safest place to sell contraband cigarettes.
A narrow path beside a storm drain at Yew Tee industrial estate has been used as a makeshift stall by contraband cigarette peddlers.
One tout said in Bahasa Indonesia: 'If there is a raid, we will see it coming long before they can catch us. We will have enough time to run.'
The spot is somewhat isolated, far from homes, and few residents go there.
There are some shops catering mostly to foreign workers.
Those who frequent the area are mostly factory workers - and those who come just to buy the smuggled cigarettes.
The illegal cigarette peddler, in his 20s, spoke to this reporter on Wednesday evening after we showed an interest in buying his wares.
A peddler selling his wares to a buyer from behind the fence.
From across a fence, he flashed several loose packets of duty-unpaid cigarettes in a red plastic bag.
At $5 for a packet of 20 sticks, it was almost half the price of a packet of duty-paid cigarettes sold at licensed outlets.
When I had asked for a brand which he did not have, he told me to wait while he ran to others standing 20m away.
When he returned, the man, who claimed to be a native of Flores, east of Java, said the menthol cigarettes I had asked for were sold out.
Still, he insisted the menthol cigarettes he sold were better.
I walked away and sat at a nearby coffee shop.
The same man persistently gestured for me to come over to the other side of the fence.
To do that, I had to walk through a gate.
He tried to entice me with a better deal - two packets for $8.
No 'hantu'
BUYERS WANTED: The peddlers pace up and down a bridge above the storm drain, in search of buyers. They sit and wait at a spot near the fence on the right.
I told him it was not a good idea for me to be talking to him, for fear of a raid.
He assured me there was no 'hantu' (ghost in Malay, but he was referring to the authorities) in the area.
Pointing to the fence, he said the customs officers would have to scale the fence to reach him.
If the authorities were to come from the path along the drain, they would be spotted 100m away.
Added the peddler confidently: 'We have learned from those previously caught selling (contraband cigarettes) by the roadside (Woodlands Road). They were too visible and easily surrounded. This spot is almost hidden from view.'
Indeed, two provision shops less than 5m from the peddlers 'stall' appeared to have no idea of what was happening nearby.
A shop assistant at one, New Star Departmental Co, said: 'It's not my business to worry what happens behind my shop. My boss will fire me if I kaypoh (be a busybody) too much.'
Despite the obscure location, smokers came in droves to buy the illegal cigarettes.
They stop their vehicles and pretend to use the ATM machine or mail box, before making a detour towards the 2m-tall fence.
A few hand gestures, and the transaction is over in 30 seconds.
The cigarettes were pushed through the holes in the fence or spots where the fence had been forced down.
On Tuesday, as many as 15 buyers approached the 11 cigarette touts within an hour.
There seemed to be a 'central pool' where the cigarettes were kept.
Added the tout from Flores: 'If we get caught with a small amount of cigarettes, our fine will be lighter.'
At 2.30pm, the group was initially spooked by a woman who seemed to be scolding them.
But the peddlers quickly ignored the woman and continued packing cigarettes into plastic bags.
In between customers, some peddlers slept on pieces of cardboard, with their plastic bags of smokes between their legs.
Others talked on their handphones or climbed the damaged fence for a quick snack at the nearby shop.
Touts were also seen entering the drain to ease themselves or wash up.
When it rained late Tuesday afternoon, the touts were prepared with big umbrellas.
'Most will get caught'
But the law always catches up with the touts sooner or later, said one pump attendant.
Said Mr Wong, who works at a nearby petrol station: 'For three years I'm used to seeing them play the game of hide-and-seek.
'Sure, some will escape, but most will get caught. I don't know why they never learn that the chances of being arrested are high, especially in Yew Tee.'
The truth is, times will be harder if one is caught buying contraband cigarettes.
Customs officers said they are aware of the situation and have been monitoring the illegal sales of duty-unpaid cigarettes in the Yew Tee area. Their aim is to 'kill the demand'.
Since the beginning of this year, more than 780,000 packets of duty-unpaid cigarettes have been seized.
