SINGAPORE – A crew member of a ship hid an elephant tusk inside a thermos flask to smuggle it into Singapore, knowing it was illegal to possess ivory without a permit.
The 30-year-old Indonesian man entered Singapore via the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) Keppel entrance crew office and was caught during baggage checks.
On Sept 10, Hafiludin, who goes by only one name, was sentenced to eight weeks’ jail for attempting to smuggle in the tusk.
National Parks Board (NParks) prosecutor Lim Chong Hui told the court that Hafiludin had bought the African elephant tusk for US$150 (S$190) from a travelling merchant while his ship was docked in Lagos, Nigeria, in December 2025.
The prosecutor said that the tusk was a specimen under the Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act.
Hafiludin also did not have any of the requisite permits or licences to import it into Singapore.
Aware of the country’s laws, he decided to hide the tusk inside the thermos flask.
He sawed off part of the flask to accommodate the tusk, which was about 27cm long and weighed around 550g. He then placed the flask in his luggage.
On Aug 8, the ship entered Singapore’s waters, his last port of call before returning home to Indonesia.
He disembarked with his luggage the next day at around 12.15pm via the ICA Keppel entrance crew office.
His luggage was put through a routine X-ray scan as part of security screening.
After the authorities uncovered the tusk inside the flask, Hafiludin claimed that the tusk was a “cigar-shaped apparatus” made of plastic and used for smoking.
The truth emerged after the case was referred to NParks and he was charged in court later.