Police told the Straits Times newspaper the May 6 arrest of the man, Tay Boon Hua, 45, had virtually ended the problem of illegal immigrants trying to enter Singapore illegally by sea.

He is believed to have tried to smuggle up to 1000 people into Singapore since 1997, often by dumping them in the waters off Singapore's northern coastline and telling them to swim the rest of the way.

"Before this, motorised sampans hovered just off Singapore waters practically every night, either trying to find a chance to dash into Singapore waters or spying on us," the paper quoted the police coast guard's chief investigating officer, Chong Choo Ha, as saying.

"But since we caught Ah Chai (Tay), there is hardly anything moving out there."

Confirming the newspaper report, police coast guard deputy assistant commissioner Jerry See said 85 people had been caught trying to enter Singapore illegally by sea in the first five months of this year.

Tay's syndicate smuggled in 56 of those people, 31 of whom were from Myanmar, 10 each from China and Nepal and five from Bangladesh, See said in a statement released to AFP.

The Straits Times said Tay charged his "customers" S$2000 (US$1200) each. He would promise to take them by boat to Singapore, but then dump them at sea and make them swim up to two kilometres (1.2 miles) to shore.

The Straits Times said Tay's case was the first time a foreigner had been extradited to Singapore and jailed without physically committing a crime within the nation's boundaries.

Senior district judge Richard Magnus said in delivering his verdict on June 11 that although the conspiracy was conceived in Malaysia, it was "continued and carried to fruition" in Singapore.

The coast guard's Chong said the case was a clear warning for other people smugglers.

"Other snakeheads now know that they are not safe from us even if they are operating outside Singapore," the paper quoted Chong as saying.

Aside from his jail term, Tay was also sentenced to 20 strokes of the cane.

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