Crime news
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Snatch theft at Yishun and Ang Mo Kio
A woman lost her gold necklace valued at $3,000 to a snatch thief at Block 763 Yishun Street 72 yesterday.
The victim, in her mid 20s, was sitting on a stone chair when a man suddenly covered her head with a T-shirt and snatched away her gold necklace.
She gave chase to the man but lost sight of him.
The man is described to be dark-complexioned, medium built, and about 1.7 metres tall.
He was last seen wearing a grey short sleeve shirt, dark pants and carrying a black
haversack.Police are also investigating a case of snatch theft that occurred at Block 710 Ang Mo Kio Ave 8 yesterday afternoon.
The victim, a woman in her mid 80s, entered the lift at the ground floor.
When the lift door was about to close, a man suddenly went in.
When the woman was walking out of the lift on the 8th floor, the man snatched a plastic bag from the her and fled.
The plastic bag contained a purse, $40 in cash and other personal documents.
The man is described to be dark-complexioned and skinny and was last seen wearing a cap.
Witnesses to the cases can call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000.
--938Live
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Break-in at Pandan Gardens
ABOUT $1,500 worth of jewellery was stolen from a flat in Pandan Gardens.
The flat owners, a 60-year-old man and his wife, had left for work on Wednesday at about 8am and returned later that evening at 6.30pm to find the corridor window grille had been dislodged.
They found thee gold bangles, worth about $1,500, missing from a dressing table. A key belonging to a wardrobe drawer was found to be broken, but nothing Eyewitnesses to the crime can call the police hotline at 1800-255-0000.--ST -
Serial con woman arrested for cheating men of their money
SINGAPORE: A woman, believed to be responsible for a series of cases of offering sex for cash and faking her own kidnapping, has been arrested. The suspect is an unemployed 22-year-old Chinese.
On Wednesday at about 1am, the woman befriended a 24-year-old Chinese man through an Internet chatroom and offered sexual services in exchange for S$300.
The two arranged to meet at a coffeeshop in Geylang the same day at about 2.35am. Upon receiving the cash, the suspect excused herself to go to the toilet but failed to return. The man then tried contacting the woman through her handphone.
He also searched for her but to no avail. One and a half hours later, the man received a text message from the suspect claiming that she had been kidnapped.
She requested him to help her by transferring an additional S$500 to an unknown bank account. At this point, the man decided to report the matter to the police.
The suspect was arrested at Jellicoe Road on Thursday at about 10.45pm.
The suspect will be charged in court on Saturday for the offence of cheating which carries a maximum jail term of 10 years imprisonment.
- 938LIVE/yt
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3 arrested for armed robbery
POLICE have arrested three Chinese men aged between 38 and 48 years old for involvement in a case of armed robbery which took place earlier on June 18.
At about 12.20 pm that day, the three suspects had robbed a 29-year-old Chinese man of his cash and belongings worth about $400 along Ang Mo Kio Ave 4.
The victim was stabbed in the process and sustained wounds on his arm as well as the back of his body. He was sent to the hospital and is currently recovering from the injuries.
Although the suspects tried to lay low and avoid detection after the incident, police subsequently managed to establish their identities.
The first suspect was arrested at Serangoon North at about 11pm on Sunday. Following the arrest of the first suspect, his other two accomplices were arrested on Monday in the vicinity of Hougang and Paya Lebar.
The three men will be charged in Court on Tuesday for armed robbery with hurt under Section 394 and Section 397 of the Penal Code, Chapter 224. If convicted, they face a jail term of up to 20 years and shall be liable for a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane.
--ST
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Two conmen prey on elderly victims in 'drop money' scam
SINGAPORE: Two men managed to con elderly victims of their cash and valuables worth $25,000 last week.
Police say the conmen used the 'drop money' scam.
Typically, the cases would involve the first culprit dropping his wallet near the targeted victim, after which his accomplice would pick it up and offer to split the money with the victim.
The accomplice would hand over the wallet to the victims for safekeeping in exchange for the victim's valuables as collateral before making some excuse to leave the victim for a short while.
When the accomplice fails to return as promised, the victims would end up with an empty wallet stuffed with tissue paper.
So far, cases have been reported in Eu Tong Sen Street, Jalan Besar, Armenian Street, Telok Ayer Street/Cecil Street, Raffles Place, Bugis and Upper Wilkie Rd.
Most of the victims were elderly persons aged between 60 to 79 years old.
Police are appealing for information on the two men to help them with their investigations.
Both men are believed to be Chinese aged between 40 to 50 years old. The first man is described as medium and plump in built, about 1.5 to 1.6 metres tall, with short hair, and often seen wearing a T-shirt with dark coloured pants.
The second man is described to be of medium and stout in built, about 1.8 metres tall, and spotting short black hair with a receding front hairline. He is also often seen wearing t-shirt with shorts/bermudas.
Anyone with information on the two men is requested to call the Police Hotline at 1800-2550000.- CNA/de
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Two men jailed for obscene act with underaged boy
Two men have been sentenced to three months jail for committing an obscene act with a 15-year-old boy.
25-year-old Victor Ng Yong You and 36-year-old Thomas Song Choong Chen pleaded guilty to masturbating the student on two separate occasions in January 2007.
According to court documents, both men got to know the boy, who is now 17, in an online chatroom popular with homosexual men.
On one occasion, Song went to the boy's flat in Jurong West and paid him $50 after getting him to perform an sexual act.
Separately he did the same to Ng at an underground carpark in Bukit Merah.
The court document also showed that the boy had advertised himself to attract men because he was needed money to maintain his lifestyle.
The two men were exposed after the boy’s mother found out and lodged a police report.
--938Live
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The man pay her $300 for sex?
Is she some kind of super chio bu?
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Cash and jewellery worth $4000 stolen from unit
A couple lost four thousand dollars in cash and jewellery when their home was broken into on Wednesday.
They had left their 6th floor unit at Block 108 Jalan Bukit Merah at about 6.45am.
When they returned at about 8.45pm, they discovered that the their home had been ransacked.
The unit's window ledges had also been tampered with.
Police are also investigationg a snatch theft that occured on the same day.
An elderly Chinese lady had her 500 dollar necklace snatched from her as she was resting at the bus-stop near Block 171 Lompang Road.
The suspect is described to be dark and medium built.
He was last seen wearing long pants and a shirt with red and black stripes.
If you have any information on the cases, you can call the police hotline at 1800-255-0000.
--938Live
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Snatch theft at Orchard Road
A Japanese man lost a laptop and other valuables to a snatch thief along Orchard Road on Saturday.
The man had just alighted at Somerset MRT station.
Police spokesperson Tham Yee Lin describes what happened.
"He was walking up the escalator when a man tapped him on his shoulder and told him that there was some white paint on his bag, which he was carrying on his left shoulder. The victim shifted his bag, containing a laptop, digital camera and digital music player, to the front to check for the paint stain. At this point, the suspect pushed the victim from behind and ran past him while snatching away the victim’s bag."
The victim then saw another man, believed to be an accomplice, running after the first suspect.
The victim gave chase but lost sight of both men.
The first suspect is described as about 1.75 meter tall, dark complexion, short hair and wearing a black short with bermudas.
The second suspect is about 1.77 meter tall, dark complexion and wearing white shirt with jeans.
Witnesses to the case can call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000.
--938Live
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Ex-CNB officer jailed for OSA
TO PROTECT her then boyfriend, a narcotics officer deleted his mobile and messages on a suspected drug offender's cellphone.
Not only that, Norini Mohamed Aloon also tipped off her then boyfriend, Imran Mohamed, 33, that one Feroz Khan Surattee, 41, had been arrested.
Feroz's phone had been seized by the Central Narcotics Bureau after a party of officers arrested him at his Circuit Road flat on Feb 18 last year for possession and consumption of a controlled drug.
CNB officer Mohammad Khairudin Rahmat, 28, found a text message on Feroz's phone from a mobile used by Imran saying that Imran would contact Feroz later to collect some heroin.
Mr Khairudin also noticed there were other messages involving Imran's number on Feroz's phone.
As they were leaving the flat, he handed the phone to Norini for safe-keeping.
On their way to the van, Norini checked Feroz's mobile and noticed Imran's number in various folders.
She quickly deleted all contents relating to Imran's mobile from the text message and call folders of Feroz's cellphone.
The number which Imran used was actually subscribed by Norini's brother, Nordin, 35, who had allowed her to let Imran use the SIM card.
When Mr Khairudin later realised that some of the text messages had been deleted, he alerted his superior.
On being confronted, Norini admitted that she had deleted some of the text messages in Feroz's mobile to screen her boyfriend and brother from CNB investigation and prosecution.
Norini was jailed for seven months on Wednesday after she admitted to destroying evidence and communicating secret information to an unauthorised person.
She could have been jailed for up to two years and/or fined for destroying electronic record.
Under the Official Secrets Act, she could have been fined up to $2,000 and jailed for up to two years.
--ST
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Couple stole S$16,000 worth of toiletries
SINGAPORE: They had stolen toiletries to the tune of about S$16,000 from supermarkets all over Singapore in eight months, and had 17 charges against them.
But because Daniel Wong Chee Kian, 38, is a schizophrenic and his wife, 39-year-old Boo Lee Choo, has a mood disorder — according to their Institute of Mental Health reports — the prosecution had already reduced the number of charges against them to one each.
And on Wednesday, they were both given a conditional discharge for stealing with a common intention. The couple’s lawyer had urged the court to grant them a conditional discharge and said they both seemed to be on the road to recovery after going for medical treatment.
Wong had originally faced 10 charges and Boo seven.
On January 21 last year, Wong and Boo went to the Cold Storage supermarket at Parkway Parade, took toiletries off the shelves and placed them in a shopping basket as they walked through the lanes.
A loss prevention officer, Mr Kelvin Po, who was monitoring the store’s CCTV cameras found their behaviour suspicious and went to the lanes to observe them.
He saw Boo taking out items from the shopping basket that Wong was holding and placing them in a red paper bag.
The couple then walked out of the supermarket without paying for the items in the red paper bag. Those were valued at around S$150.
Mr Po approached them but before he was able to introduce himself, Boo tried to escape. She struggled with Mr Po and scratched his hands. Wong ran away during the scuffle.
Boo was eventually detained. Wong was arrested later.
- TODAY/ yt
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Taxi Robber nabbed
A 38-year-old man was arrested this morning for his suspected involvement in a taxi robbery that took place last month.
The suspect was arrested in the vicinity of Block 109 Paris Ris Street 11.
He is believed to have boarded a taxi on the 25th of July at about 1.45am, along Elias Road.
Upon reaching the carpark of Block 133 Pasir Ris Street 11, the suspect pinned a sharp object against the taxi driver's neck, and demanded that valuables be handed over.
The suspect then took off with cash amounting to about 100 dollars and the victim's handphone.
He will be charged in court tomorrow for armed robbery.
If convicted, the man faces a jail term of up to 14 years and a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane.
--938Live
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any idea who commited most these crimes
Local or foreigner?
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Snatch theft at Serangoon Road
A woman in her mid 20s lost her mobile phone worth $700 to a snatch thief yesterday.
The victim was standing on Serangoon Road when the incident happened at about 5pm.
Police spokesperson Mohamad Hamizyam with the details.
"The man came from behind and snatched away her handphone before fleeing. The suspect is described to be of dark complexion, in his 40s, and last seen wearing a white T-shirt and slippers."
Witnesses to call the police hotline at 1800-255-0000.
--938Live
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Snatch theft at Chin Swee Road
An elderly lady lost her handbag containing cash and other belongings to a snatch thief last evening.
The theft took place as the woman, who's in her early 80s, was walking along Chin Swee Road.
Police spokesperson Mohamad Hamizyam describes what happened:
"When an unknown man suddenly approached her and grabbed her handbag. The man managed to snatched away the handbag and fled towards the direction of Outram Road. The suspect is described to be of fair complexion, and was last seen wearing a black shirt with white stripes, and dark long pants."
Witnesses can call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000.
--938Live
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Police appealing for information on sleight-of-hand thieves
The Police are appealing for information on two groups of Middle Eastern foreigners believed to be responsible for a series of theft in shopping malls.
The culprits are known to work in groups of twos or threes and would typically approach the cashier of merchandise store or F&B outlets on the pretext of changing money.
They have been known to also make small purchases, or request to view the variety of Singapore notes in the cash register.
While talking with the victim, one of the culprits would take a stack of notes from the victim's hands or directly from the cash register.
The culprit would then pretend to count the notes or browse through them out of interest.
The other accomplices would also distract the victim by making other enquiries.
The suspects are known to make various excuses to get hold of the money, such as feigning displeasure at the cashier's slow speed or claiming that the change amount was wrong.
The stack of notes would eventually be returned to the victim, but with some of the money stolen.
So far, the culprits have managed to steal $6,300.
Anyone with information on the culprits can call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000.
The police say all information will be kept strictly confidential.
--938Live
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Police arrest 48-year-old suspect for robbery
SINGAPORE: Police arrested a 48-year-old man earlier on Sunday morning, just 20 minutes after he had robbed a Chinese woman at knifepoint.
The police received a call at about 1am, notifying them that a lift robbery had taken place at Block 48, Lengkok Bahru.
On searching for the suspect in the surrounding areas, the police officers finally tracked him down at a nearby block.
The suspect had threatened the 26-year-old victim at knifepoint when the lift arrived on the ninth floor.
Fearing for her safety, the victim handed over S$34 in cash, a S$398 handphone and a silver necklace worth S$10 to the suspect, who then fled the scene when the lift doors opened.
If convicted of armed robbery, the suspect will face a jail term of up to 14 years and 24 strokes of the cane.
- CNA/sc -
Jerry Ee pleads guilty
Former Cortina Watch luxury watch shop supervisor Jerry Ee has pleaded guilty to five charges consisting of criminal breach of trust and money laundering.
The 36-year-old appeared before District Judge Chia Week Kiat this morning.
Twenty other CBT charges will be taken into consideration when Ee is sentenced on September the 18th.
The court heard that on Christmas Day last year, Ee returned to the shop after it closed at 9pm, disarmed the security alarm and stole 366 watches, five pairs of cuff links worth some $8 million and about $27,000 cash from a safe.
He then returned home to pack and headed for Johor with the loot before renting a taxi to take him to Hatyai.
After selling 21 of the watches in Bangkok, Ee hid in Pattaya for about three months before surrendering to authorities in Bangkok in March this year.Following his arrest, only $4.6 million worth of stolen goods and cash were recovered from him.
According to court documents, Ee had already been stealing from Cortina and its customers since November 2006.
For the each of the four criminal breach of trust charge, Ee faces up to 15 years in prison and could also be fined.
For the money laundering charge, he could be jailed up to seven years if convicted and fined up to $500,000.
--938Live
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Man arrested for alleged tax evasion
SINGAPORE: A man has been arrested for allegedly under-declaring the value of imported cars from Japan.
Singapore Customs said on Monday that 54-year-old Sia Chee Han will face 90 charges for evading excise duty and GST on 146 such cars.
The under-declaration resulted in S$147,112 unpaid in duty and tax.
Sia will be charged in court on Tuesday.
- CNA/so
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18-year-old arrested for spate of house break-ins in Hougang area
SINGAPORE : Police have nabbed an 18-year-old believed to be responsible for a series of break-ins in the Hougang area.
Since July, a spate of break-ins was reported where flat units with windows left unsecured or with louvres that are easily forced opened, were targeted.
It is believed the suspect had reached in through the window or used a long rod to "fish" out valuables such as wallets, laptops and mobile phones.
The cash and valuables stolen are said to amount to some S$3,000.
The suspect was finally caught on Wednesday when officers spotted him carrying a billiard cue and behaving suspiciously at a void deck in the vicinity of Hougang Ave 10.
If convicted, he could be jailed up to 14 years and caned.- CNA /ls
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Police arrested another bogus HDB contractor
Police have arrested a man for allegedly posing as an HDB contractor.
The arrest comes just two weeks after they nabbed another man who's believed to have committed a similar offence.
The 32-year old Chinese man who they caught yesterday is allegedly involved in more than 20 cases of cheating.
It's believed that since July this year, the suspect would persuade his victims to replace their old wooden doors and metal gates with new ones.
He would allegedly issue them with an invoice after pocketing the cash handed over to him as payment for the items.
He would then dupe his victims by claiming he would install the doors and gates in a few days' time.
But police say, the promised items never materialised and the suspect would be uncontactable.
Through their investigations, officers from Clementi Police Division managed to arrest him along Geylang Road at around 6pm yesterday.
The suspect will be charged with cheating in court tomorrow.
If convicted, he could be jailed up to ten years and fined.
--938Live
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Police arrest pickpocketing duo
Police have arrested two Vietnamese believed to be responsible for a string of pickpocketing cases in the Bugis area.
One of them's a 20 year old man while his accomplice is a 60 year old woman.
Plainclothes officers from the Central Police Division were conducting anti-crime patrols around Bugis Junction shopping mall yesterday afternoon when they noticed the suspects tailing some of the passers-by.
The woman was then spotted peering into a shopper's bag while the man appeared to be acting as a lookout.
She allegedly slipped her hand into the bag and felt around its contents before walking away with her companion.
Officers moved in to arrest the duo after they witnessed this.
The suspects were found with four Ez-link cards and two mobile phones - all believed to be stolen from their victims.
The duo will be charged with theft in court tomorrow morning.
If convicted, they could be jailed up to three years and fined.
--938Live
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Police raid at COMEX
Police raided a retailer at COMEX IT fair today and seized 55 laptops installed with unlicensed Microsoft Windows XP Professional software worth more than $30,000.
The China-made "Losang" branded laptops were also affixed with recycled Certificates of Authenticity - a label to help buyers determine whether the software they are buying is genuine.
These certificates should not be sold independently of the software.
The raid took place after the authorities received a tip-off through the Business Software Alliance anti-piracy hotline yesterday.
Following this incident, Microsoft Singapore has urged consumers to exercise vigilance when purchasing computers.
They must also ensure that they do not end up with systems pre-installed with illegal software.
Jonathan Selvasegaram, Microsoft Southeast Asia's Corporate Attorney for Intellectual Property, says pirated software can pose a serious security threat.
That's because illegal programmes can lead to a corrupted system, loss of data and identity theft.
Investigations revealed that several hundred units of "Losang" laptops containing unlicensed software may have been imported into Singapore for sale during COMEX, says Mr Selvasegaram.
The annual fair, which kicked off yesterday, is organised by publisher of IT-related products, Eastern Directories.
Its General Manager, Melvin Koh.
"We are actually investigating the case together with Microsoft itself. But we have yet to come up with anything yet."
Under the Copyright Act, those found guilty of selling counterfeit software can be fined up to $10,000 for each article, jailed a maximum of five years or both.
--938Live
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Man arrested in connection with murder at Bedok Reservoir Rd
SINGAPORE : Police have arrested a 33-year-old man in connection with a murder at Block 616 Bedok Reservoir Road on September 12.
The deceased, a 50-year-old man, was found unconscious and injured at the void deck of the housing block at about 6.30pm.
He was sent to Changi General Hospital but died later that night.
Investigations revealed the deceased had been in a fight with the suspect, who was later arrested on September 18 at 10.45am.
The suspect will be charged in court on Saturday.- CNA/ms