Bird smugglers caught in bait and trap operation; three jailed

Endangered bird among the 138 that died, likely from the stress of smuggling process

- Wong Shiying

As the Malaysia-registered trailer truck arrived at Tuas Checkpoint on March 23, 2023, Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers saw the driver behaving suspiciously and stopped him for checks.

They discovered 337 birds in plastic boxes hidden under the truck's seats and makeshift beds.

Truck driver Aizzuddin Hadi Mohd Ishak, 27, was arrested but instead of taking the Malaysian into custody, National Parks Board (NParks) officers allowed him to drive into Singapore.

They were using him as bait, and within hours, nabbed the mastermind and middleman.

According to a court judgment made available on April 6, eight plastic containers of live birds were found during the inspection at about 3.35am.

While Hadi was being questioned, the mastermind behind the smuggling, pet shop owner Leow Seng Lee, 62, was getting suspicious.

Leow called the middleman in the smuggling operation, Ng Liang Huat, 60, several times to check whether the birds had arrived.

Ng said the driver had been delayed, and would arrive at around noon. Leow told Ng that Hadi had probably been arrested and told him to keep a lookout for NParks officers.

Unaware that the driver had been arrested, Ng said he would still meet Hadi to collect the birds.

NParks officers let Hadi drive to Tuas Link to meet Ng, who was waiting there with $900 for Hadi.

Once there, the officers swooped in and arrested Ng.

Ng admitted that Leow had ordered the birds and agreed to bait the latter into thinking the transaction was going as planned.