Latest news with #evaporisers
Malay Mail
6 days ago
- Malay Mail
JB-Singapore vape run ends in two-week jail term after 1,800 devices found in car at Woodlands
SINGAPORE, July 17 — A Singaporean man who tried to smuggle more than 1,800 e-vaporisers and pods into Singapore from Johor Bahru has been sentenced to two weeks' jail, The Straits Times reported yesterday. James Wong Jun Jie, 36, was caught during his second attempt at Woodlands Checkpoint in September 2024, when officers discovered the illicit haul hidden in the boot and bonnet of his car. Investigators later found another stash in his Sin Ming flat from an earlier undetected run. He pleaded guilty to one charge under the Tobacco (Control of Advertisements and Sale) Act. Three other similar charges were considered during sentencing. According to court documents cited by The Straits Times, Wong was recruited earlier that year by a man known only as Raj, whom he met at the Mid Valley Southkey mall in Johor Bahru. Raj offered him RM600 per trip to smuggle e-vaporisers and pods into Singapore. On September 10, 2024, Wong completed his first trip without being stopped. Emboldened, he attempted a second run two days later. He drove to Johor Bahru, parked at Mydin Mall, and left his car unlocked so that Raj's associates could load it with vapes. When he returned to Singapore around 11am on September 12, he was flagged by Immigration and Checkpoints Authority officers. They found 1,086 pods and 732 e-vaporisers in his car, which were handed over to the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) for investigation. That same night, HSA officers raided his home and found an additional 1,320 pods and 679 vapes from the earlier smuggling trip. Wong had been waiting for Raj's instructions to complete delivery by leaving the car unlocked at a carpark in Woodlands. District Judge Wong Li Tein rejected Wong's appeal for a lighter community-based sentence, stating: 'The problem of vaping in Singapore is a serious one. So community-based sentences are not suitable.' The Straits Times noted that Wong's case comes amid a surge in enforcement to curb the growing vape problem in Singapore. In May, HSA and the Ministry of Health said nearly 18,000 people were caught for possessing or using e-vaporisers between January 2024 and March 2025. Seizures during that period totalled S$41 million (RM135.6 million) — nearly five times the value of all seizures from 2019 to end-2023. The HSA has also intensified prosecution efforts. In the same statement, the agency said it had prosecuted 27 people for failing to pay fines and took another 60 individuals to court for selling e-vaporisers. Two men involved in a major smuggling syndicate, Ivan Sin and Toh Wee Leong, received the harshest penalties so far — each fined over S$14,000 and sentenced to 10 months' jail.
CNA
29-05-2025
- General
- CNA
HSA's specialised system can automatically scan internet 24/7 for vape listings
The Health Sciences Authority is closely monitoring the use of e-vaporisers, or vapes to consume etomidate, a fast-acting anaesthetic used for medical procedures. The HSA warned that inhaling it directly into the lungs can cause side effects, such as spasms, breathing issues and seizures. Cases involving the drug are up by more than four times so far this year, compared with the whole of last year. Ahead of World No Tobacco Day, Aslam Shah takes an exclusive look at the agency's enforcement efforts.
CNA
16-05-2025
- Health
- CNA
15 fined for posting vaping content on social media
SINGAPORE: Fifteen people who posted photos or videos of e-vaporisers on their social media accounts between January 2024 and March 2025 were identified and fined, the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Health Sciences Authority (HSA) said on Friday (May 16). Ten of the offenders were caught in the last two quarters. The platforms used by those caught include TikTok and the livestreaming platform Bigo. MOH and HSA said that over 17,900 people have been caught for the possession or use of e-vaporisers in the same period, attributing this to "stepped-up, multi-agency enforcement efforts". HSA said that it seized more than S$41 million (US$31.6 million) worth of e-vaporisers and components from January 2024 to March 2025 and prosecuted 60 people for selling vapes, including those linked to warehouses storing products worth millions of dollars. During joint operations by HSA and the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) within the stipulated period, 101 travellers entering Singapore were caught with e-vaporisers. Smuggling cases involving 91 smugglers were also referred to HSA by ICA, the authorities said. About 6,437 listings of e-vaporisers and related components were removed from online platforms in 2024, more than double of the 3,149 listings removed in 2023, MOH and HSA said. The Health Promotion Board (HPB) provides cessation support for students caught vaping. Parents can call its QuitLine at 1800 438 2000 for a referral to HPB's smoking and vaping cessation service, the authorities said. 44 PER CENT INCREASE IN PEOPLE CAUGHT WITH VAPES According to data on HSA's website, 3,171 people were caught using or possessing e-vaporisers in the first quarter of 2025, a 44 per cent increase from the same period in 2024 (2,200). In the final quarter of 2024, 3,557 people were caught for similar offences. The authorities warned that possessing, using or purchasing vapes carries a maximum fine of S$2,000, while anyone caught selling them faces a fine of up to S$10,000, a jail term of up to six months, or both, with heavier punishments for repeat offenders. All prohibited tobacco items will be seized and confiscated. Those who fail to promptly pay their fines will face harsher consequences if prosecuted in court, MOH and HSA said, adding that 27 such offenders were prosecuted between January 2024 and March 2025.
