SINGAPORE (VNExpress): A Singapore man has been handed 124 criminal charges for allegedly orchestrating the smuggling of 53 dogs and seven cats from Malaysia and confining them in cramped cages at a Geylang Road shophouse for illegal sale.
Ho Choon Wei, 43, appeared in court on March 27 accused of causing unnecessary suffering to the 60 animals, which were found in cages without proper ventilation at 453A Geylang Road on Oct. 24, 2024, The Straits Times reported. He is also charged with keeping the animals in captivity for sale without a license.
Between February and October 2024, Ho allegedly engaged two men to import the animals from Malaysia without any license, according to charge sheets. The group employed couriers to transport the dogs and cats to the Geylang Road address, where they were held for buyers.
Ho had incorporated a pet grooming business registered to the same Geylang Road address in December 2022, though the company has since been canceled, according to checks by The Straits Times.
It is not the first time Ho's name has appeared in Singapore's courts over pet smuggling. In 2019, he recruited a courier named Kelvin Seo to transport animals from a pet shop in Johor Bahru across the Causeway, offering S$500 (US$388) per trip, according to court documents cited by CNA and Yahoo News.
Seo was sentenced to 24 weeks in jail in 2021 after six animals were found stuffed into a spare tyre compartment with no ventilation, food or water. Ho's charges in that case were reported as still pending at the time of Seo's sentencing.
Singapore has recorded a surge in pet smuggling from Malaysia in recent years, with 42 cases detected at its borders in 2024 alone, the highest in recent years, according to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority and the National Parks Board.
In one case in May 2024, seven puppies and a kitten were found sedated in a modified car boot compartment; six of the animals later died from canine parvovirus.
Smuggled animals are often transported in cramped, poorly ventilated spaces and frequently arrive dehydrated, injured or diseased. Animals smuggled from unapproved sources also pose public health risks, including the potential introduction of rabies to Singapore, which has been rabies-free for more than 60 years.
Ho did not enter a plea and is scheduled to return to court on May 8.
If convicted of importing the animals without a license, he faces up to 12 months in jail, a fine of up to S$10,000, or both.
For causing unnecessary suffering in confinement, the penalty rises to up to two years in jail, a fine of up to S$40,000, or both. Keeping animals for sale without a license carries up to six months in jail, a fine of up to S$5,000, or both. -- Report from VNExpress
