Passenger fined R37k for bringing chicken sandwich into Australia
Bringing perishables into a country is definitely a no-no...
The rule of thumb when travelling is that you are not allowed to take food that is perishable from one country to another.
Not that it is something everyone practices though, as there are many people who have found their way around the rule and have gotten away with it.
But what happens to a person who forgets to declare that they in fact have food (meat) on their person?
Well, it seems that forgetfulness is a costly mistake.
June Armstrong, 77, travelled from New Zealand to Australia earlier this year and she was fined "3,300 New Zealand dollars, or $1,995, for bringing an uneaten sandwich into Australia." (Business Insider)
That's around R37,348!
As per the report, Armstrong said that she packed the chicken sandwich into her bag and declared her prescription medication to the authorities, but forgot to mention the sandwich.
She was advised to appeal her fine, but she was met with automatic responses when she did try.
As a pensioner, Armstrong found it very difficult to pay the fine. Australian Authorities said that the only way she could've brought the sandwich into the country was with an import permit.
"Meat has strict import conditions which can change quickly based on disease outbreaks," the spokesperson said, adding that passengers can be fined up to 6,260 Australian dollars, or around $4,100, for bringing unauthorized food items into the country." (Business Insider)
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Crazily enough, this is not the first time a person was fined for bringing something undeclared into the airport.
"In August, a passenger was fined $1,200 for walking with a rose at an airport in Australia. And in August last year, a passenger was fined $1,870 for packing McMuffin sandwiches on a flight from Bali to Australia." (Business Insider)
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