A man from Malaysia, who has Indian roots, was found guilty of hiding a puppy in a laundry bag to smuggle it into Singapore. He has been sentenced to eight weeks in jail and fined SGD2,500 (about ₹1,62,805).
Mahentharan Ganesan, 43, faced three charges: one for bringing an animal into Singapore without permission and two for not taking proper care of the puppy. The court took one extra charge into account for his punishment.
What happened? On October 20, 2023, officers examining vehicles at the Tuas checkpoint found a live puppy stuck in a laundry bag in Ganesan’s car. Ganesan owned a transportation company in Malaysia and had borrowed money from someone unknown. This person suggested Ganesan could repay his debt by smuggling animals into Singapore.
At first, Ganesan said no because it was illegal, but later he agreed due to his financial problems. He was introduced to another man called ‘Mr. Dog’. This man gave Ganesan job instructions. Ganesan would pick up animals from one place and deliver them to others in Singapore. Sometimes, the animals were in laundry bags or boxes and seemed sleepy.
For each trip, Ganesan received SGD60, no matter how many animals he delivered, which was usually between one and three. The report does not specify how many trips he made. The identities of the person he owed money to and ‘Mr. Dog’ are still unknown, as well as where the animals came from.
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