(Bandar Seri Begawan, 20th) A man who tried to appeal against smuggling unreported taxable goods had his application dismissed by the High Court on Monday due to overdue submission.
47-year-old Brunei citizen Rodney Kisbury admitted to two charges of violating the 2006 Excise Order in December 2024 and was fined 10,000 Brunei dollars (BND). One charge was for possessing undeclared cigarettes, and the other for possessing untaxed liquor.
These charges stemmed from an incident around 10:05 PM on March 5, 2024, when Kisbury was stopped at the Kuala Lurah checkpoint while driving a white Daihatsu Terios. Although he declared some alcoholic beverages, customs officers found other undeclared items in the car: three packs of cigarettes and two bottles of liquor.
The unpaid taxes for the cigarettes amounted to 300 BND, and for the liquor, it was 19 BND.
He was sentenced on December 14, 2024, and the court ordered him to pay a fine of 10,000 BND by May 14. However, Kisbury only paid 200 BND of the fine and applied for an appeal on May 5, 2025, requesting an extension for paying the remaining fine.
In the hearing held on May 13, Kisbury stated that he was unaware that the appeal had to be filed within two weeks and requested to pay the remaining 9,800 BND in installments of 100 BND per month over 98 months.
Judicial Commissioner Faisal ruled on May 19 to dismiss the application. As a result, Kisbury will be sentenced to 10 months in prison for failing to pay the fine.
47-year-old Brunei citizen Rodney Kisbury admitted to two charges of violating the 2006 Excise Order in December 2024 and was fined 10,000 Brunei dollars (BND). One charge was for possessing undeclared cigarettes, and the other for possessing untaxed liquor.
These charges stemmed from an incident around 10:05 PM on March 5, 2024, when Kisbury was stopped at the Kuala Lurah checkpoint while driving a white Daihatsu Terios. Although he declared some alcoholic beverages, customs officers found other undeclared items in the car: three packs of cigarettes and two bottles of liquor.
The unpaid taxes for the cigarettes amounted to 300 BND, and for the liquor, it was 19 BND.
He was sentenced on December 14, 2024, and the court ordered him to pay a fine of 10,000 BND by May 14. However, Kisbury only paid 200 BND of the fine and applied for an appeal on May 5, 2025, requesting an extension for paying the remaining fine.
In the hearing held on May 13, Kisbury stated that he was unaware that the appeal had to be filed within two weeks and requested to pay the remaining 9,800 BND in installments of 100 BND per month over 98 months.
Judicial Commissioner Faisal ruled on May 19 to dismiss the application. As a result, Kisbury will be sentenced to 10 months in prison for failing to pay the fine.