Serial Housebreaker Arrested

Good to know the culprit has been caught.

There's also tips on how to prevent any housebreaking entries.

Source: http://www.spf.gov.sg/mic/2011/110126_serial_house_breaker.htm

Police have arrested a 47-year-old man who is believed to be involved in a series of housebreaking and theft cases at various HDB housing estates islandwide.

In these cases, the suspect had gained access to the units by forcing open the common corridor window. Items stolen included jewellery, laptops and cash.

Following a detailed crime analysis and extensive follow-up investigations, officers from Bedok Police Division managed to establish a profile of the suspect. On 25 January 2011 at about 10.40pm , officers from Bedok Police Division managed to track down the suspect and arrested him at Sentosa. Upon his arrest, the suspect was found to be in possession of two pairs of gloves and several housebreaking implements. In addition, cash of about $1700/-, 27 pieces of Commemorative Coins and a ‘Sony Vaio’ notebook believed to be stolen goods, were recovered from him.

The suspect will be charged in Court 26 on 27 January 2011 for Housebreaking & Theft By Day under Section 454 of the Penal Code, Chapter 224 which carries a maximum of ten years imprisonment. If convicted, he will also be liable for caning.

Commander of Bedok Police Division HQ, Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Police Teo Chun Ching, commended his officers for their good investigative work which led to the suspect’s arrest. He also offered the following crime prevention advice to house owners:

a) Use lock and grilles that are strong and of good quality, and remember to lock the premises when you leave;

b) Some sliding windows can be easily removed from their tracks. A metal bar running across the window track makes it harder for someone to remove the window forcibly;

c) Install a burglar alarm that is linked to a central alarm monitoring system;

d) Install a CCTV monitoring system;

e) Light up strategic locations like doors, windows and other vulnerable points; and

f) Do not keep large amount of cash or valuables at your premises.



PUBLIC AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
26 January 2011 @ 5.00pm

Don't Let This Happen to You

Last week, there was a vandalism case that happened right here at Vic Street. A car parked at Blk 10 level 3 multi-storey carpark was vandalized. The Mr Jon from Blk 3 was parking his car when he saw the scene. But unfortunately it was too late. The vehicle has been badly damaged and the culprits are at large.

If you have any information regarding this incident, we urge you to report to the authorities at
Vic Street Neighbourhood Police Centre
Contact: 1800 - 767 9999

Be warned, vandals may face up to 3 years imprisonment or fine, and liable to
not less than 3 strokes of the cane.

Vandalism Prevention Tips

In this post we view some tips for vandalism prevention.

• Use good lighting as this ensures that potential vandals are more visible and increases their chances of getting caught.
  
• Use unbreakable fixtures or glass when possible. This reduces a person’s opportunities to vandalize.
  
• Clean up any signs of vandalism as soon as they appear. This may involve repairing broken or damaged signs or equipment.
  
• If you see someone committing an act of vandalism, report it to the police.
  

For more information:
http://crimeprevention.rutgers.edu/crime/vandalism/vandalism.htm

Penalty:
Any person who commits any act of vandalism or attempts to do any such act or causes any such act to be done shall be guilty of an offence. He shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years, and shall also, subject to section 231 of the Criminal Procedure Code, be punished with caning with not less than 3 strokes and not more than 8 strokes.

For more information:
http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/non_version/cgi-bin/cgi_getdata.pl?actno=1966-REVED-341&doctitle=VANDALISM%20ACT%0A&date=latest&method=whole