Jail for man who drove stolen deregistered cars into Malaysia
SINGAPORE – A man who was part of an organised criminal group which stole deregistered cars and drove them across the Causeway was sentenced to 20 months’ jail and fined $1,390 on Nov 11.
The group, made up of two Malaysians and a Singaporean, stole four vehicles from scrap companies in Singapore and re-sold them in Malaysia after replacing the registration plates.
Deregistered vehicles have had their official registration cancelled, and no longer have valid road tax, insurance or a certificate of entitlement.
Abdullah Abbas Mohd Arba Ai, 31, pleaded guilty to four charges, including two counts of committing motor vehicle theft as part of an organised criminal group.
The Malaysian will also be banned from driving 18 months after his release from prison.
Abdullah was working as a Grab driver in Malaysia when he got to know Singaporean Terry Toh Kwang Huat, 53.
He introduced Toh to Mohd Mazuan Abdullah, 39, an agent who purchased deregistered vehicles from Singapore for resale in Malaysia.
Toh and Mazuan’s cases are pending.
Both men planned to steal deregistered vehicles in Singapore by exploiting the scrap companies’ practice of leaving the keys on the tyres of the cars.
After stealing them, they replaced the Singapore registration plates with Malaysian ones obtained by Mazuan, and drove the vehicles into Malaysia.
Between October and November 2025, Abdullah was promised about $155 for every vehicle he transported.
On Oct 23, 2025, Mazuan and Toh located a deregistered Toyota Camry parked at a scrap company’s premises in Sungei Kadut.
The vehicle was worth about $4,500.
Toh found the car keys on the tyre and drove the car to a carpark in Woodlands with Mazuan.
There, Mazuan fixed an illegally-obtained Malaysian plate on the car, then returned to Malaysia.
Toh drove the vehicle to a car park near a mosque at Admiralty Road and left the key on the tyre.
Mazuan, who was in Malaysia, contacted Abdullah and told him to collect the car from the mosque and drive it into Malaysia.
Abdullah entered Singapore via Woodlands Checkpoint and collected the car.
Once he entered Malaysia, Abdullah parked the car at Mazuan’s condominium. He received $155 for the job.
On Nov 24, 2025, Abdullah entered Singapore to drive a deregistered Toyota Altis across the Causeway.
He picked up the car from the same mosque, and received about $78 after parking the car at Mazuan’s condominium in Malaysia.
Between Nov 19 and 23, 2025, Abdullah transported two other stolen vehicles from Singapore to Malaysia.
Mazuan sold two of the four stolen vehicles, earning RM 9,500 (S$2,990). All four vehicles were recovered in Malaysia.
Abdullah was arrested at Woodlands Checkpoint on Jan 20 when he tried to enter Singapore.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Santhiya Kulasakeran sought a sentence of 20 to 24 months’ jail, 18 months’ driving disqualification and a disgorgement fine of $1,390 for Abdullah.
She said he occupied a relatively low position within the group, as he was tasked to drive the stolen vehicles into Malaysia and hand them over to Mazuan.
She added: “That said, his culpability is not negligible. He had reasonable grounds to believe that the vehicles he was driving were stolen Singapore cars bearing false Malaysian plates.”
Road safety threat
There were 40 cases of deregistered vehicles being used on roads in 2022, and 39 in 2023. The figure jumped to 75 in 2024 and 245 in 2025.
In the first five months of 2026, LTA investigated 122 cases.
A fatal crash along Tampines Avenue 12 on Oct 29 which killed a motorcyclist and his pregnant wife involved a deregistered vehicle.
An islandwide crackdown in September found 91 deregistered vehicles, which were impounded.
In February, the Land Transport and Related Matters Bill was passed, raising the maximum penalties for keeping or using unregistered or deregistered vehicles.
Previously, those caught keeping or using a deregistered vehicle could be fined up to $2,000 and jailed for up to three months for a first offence. Repeat offenders could be fined up to $5,000 and jailed for up to six months.
The punishment was increased to up to two years’ jail and a $20,000 fine for first-time offenders, and double that for repeat offenders.
