A Singaporean woman has become the first person in the city-state to receive a jail sentence for keeping animals in captivity for sale at unlicensed premises. Ng Siew Teng, 28, was sentenced on August 5 to 19 weeks and three days in jail, along with a $5,000 fine, after pleading guilty to five charges under the Animals and Birds Act.

Ng and her husband, Callurn Lim Yuan Jin, 34, were involved in an illegal puppy importation and sales scheme. Lim received a sentence of one year, nine months, 21 weeks, and three days in jail on September 11, alongside a $12,000 fine. Should he be unable to pay the fine, he will serve an additional four weeks and 10 days behind bars. Both were implicated in multiple offences, including those connected to the animal welfare law and criminal activities linked to a Cambodia-based scam syndicate.

Authorities revealed that Lim had enlisted an accomplice, 22-year-old Bryan Peh Jia Hao, to smuggle puppies from Malaysia into Singapore. Lim reportedly approached Peh in October 2023, offering payments of $250 to $300 for each puppy smuggled. Peh agreed and carried out several importations that month. The couple then housed the puppies at their residence and advertised them for sale on Instagram. From October to December 2023, they sold 21 puppies and made approximately $21,000 in profits.

The scheme was uncovered on December 27, 2023, when officers from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority stopped Peh’s vehicle at the Woodlands Checkpoint and found five two-month-old Pomeranian puppies concealed in the boot. The National Parks Board (NParks) confirmed that the animals had been transported in cramped, poorly ventilated conditions that caused them unnecessary suffering. All five puppies subsequently tested positive for canine parvovirus, a highly contagious virus that can cause severe illness and death in dogs. Details regarding the puppies’ current health status were not disclosed.

In addition to the animal offences, Lim was identified as a member of a Cambodia-based syndicate responsible for at least 28 scam cases that resulted in over $52 million in losses between September 2024 and September 2025. The group targeted Singaporean victims through government official impersonation scams.

Separately, another case involving illegally imported animals resulted in a heavier jail term. On August 17, 33-year-old Sundra Pandian was sentenced to 24 weeks in prison after pleading guilty to nine charges under the Animals and Birds Act. He had kept 13 smuggled animals at his home. NParks described this as the harshest sentence imposed for keeping animals in captivity for sale at unlicensed premises to date. Sundra was connected to Chow Chee Hoe, 25, who received a $4,000 fine on September 1.

Following a public tip-off, Chow was arrested on September 26, 2025, by officers from the Animal and Veterinary Service, a cluster under NParks, for attempting to sell two smuggled dogs. Chow had been operating several locations as pet shops to sell dogs on behalf of a transnational syndicate that smuggled animals from Thailand to Singapore. He would collect animals from Sundra and arrange sales with buyers.

Authorities seized 12 dogs of various breeds, including Sundra’s pet Rottweiler, and two British Shorthair cats. The animals were confined in stacked cages and pet carriers within a service yard for periods of two to three weeks, with limited exercise and movement. Several animals exhibited signs of ill health and required veterinary care, with one dog testing positive for canine parvovirus. NParks has not provided updates on the current conditions of these animals.