BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

A MAN was fined $10,000 by the Magistrates’ Court yesterday for attempting to smuggle diesel out of Brunei.

The court document states that on June 11, 2012, Customs Preventive Officers, the police and Land Transport Department officers stopped a Mitsubishi Pajero that was suspected of being used to smuggle fuel. The car was driven by the defendant, Tan You Kiang, 63. When he was stopped he was heading to Limbang, Sarawak.

Officers pumped 110 litres of diesel out of the defendant’s vehicle, which had a designed fuel capacity of only 92 litres.

During the investigation, Tan admitted that he went to Limbang, twice a day. He further admitted that he bought the diesel that was pumped from his car at a Gadong petrol station on April 26, 2013, for $18.

In yesterday’s proceedings, the presiding senior magistrate ordered the defendant to settle the fines by February 28, or face the in-default sentence of 12 months in jail.

The Brunei Times