A Singapore court has sentenced an Indonesian tugboat crew member to eight months’ imprisonment and three strokes of the cane for helping multiple foreigners enter the country illegally by sea.

The sentence was imposed on Dec 17 after the State Courts found that Febry Iswanto, 23, had abetted the unlawful entry of five unidentified foreigners in two separate incidents between August and October 2024. The individuals involved have not been identified and remain at large.

Febry pleaded guilty to one charge under the Immigration Act for assisting three foreigners to enter Singapore illegally. A second charge involving two other foreigners was taken into consideration during sentencing.

Court records showed that Febry began working in March 2024 on an Indonesia-registered tugboat that towed a barge carrying granite to Singapore.

During his employment, he became acquainted with another crew member, Jefryansyah, who was later dismissed from his job due to poor performance. Despite this, the two men continued communicating.

Sometime before Aug 31, Jefryansyah contacted Febry and offered to pay him 1.5 million rupiah, or about S$115, for each person he helped transport illegally into Singapore using the tugboat and barge.

Prosecutors told the court that Febry was aware the arrangement was illegal but accepted the offer because he needed money, reportedly to modify his motorcycle.

The first incident occurred in late August while the vessels were still in Indonesian waters en route to Singapore. A small boat approached the tugboat and barge, carrying two unknown individuals who boarded the vessels and hid inside an anchor compartment during the journey.

The vessels arrived at Pulau Punggol Aggregate Terminal on Aug 30 to unload granite. In the early hours of Aug 31, Febry switched off the floodlights and guided the two individuals out of the compartment. He then escorted them to the stern of the vessels and instructed them to swim towards mainland Singapore and hide in a forested area.

Febry later learnt from Jefryansyah that only one of the two individuals had reached a designated “safe place”. As a result, he received a reduced payment of one million rupiah through a bank transfer.

A similar operation took place in October, when Jefryansyah again approached Febry to assist three more people in entering Singapore illegally, offering the same payment per person.

On Oct 25, while the tugboat and barge were again travelling from Indonesia to Singapore, three individuals arrived in a sampan, boarded the vessels and hid in the anchor compartment.

When the vessels reached Pulau Punggol Aggregate Terminal later that day, the three individuals disembarked in the early hours of Oct 26 and were instructed to swim to shore.

Febry was not paid for his role in this operation, although court documents did not disclose the reason. The three individuals are also believed to remain at large.

The Police Coast Guard arrested Febry and seven other foreign crew members at the terminal on Nov 9. The tugboat and barge were seized as exhibits, and investigations into the possible involvement of the remaining crew members are ongoing.

During sentencing, the prosecution said Febry’s actions were premeditated and well-planned, adding that he had taken deliberate steps to conceal the offences.

These included using code words with his accomplice and allowing the illegal entrants to disembark under the cover of darkness. The court was also told that the offences were motivated by financial gain.

In mitigation, Febry appealed for leniency through an interpreter, stating that he was the only child in his family and contributed to his household’s financial needs. He also indicated that he would not reoffend.

Under Singapore law, the offence of intentionally aiding a person to enter the country illegally carries a mandatory jail sentence of between six months and two years, along with not less than three strokes of the cane.

References: channelnewsasia, straitstimes