A Chinese national visiting Singapore for the first time developed criminal intent after believing Singapore to be a wealthy country, and in just two days, he broke into two residences and stole branded jewelry worth over 100,000 SGD (about 315,000 RMB).
According to Shin Min Daily News, the accused, Huang Xiaozong (transliteration, 41), faces three charges including housebreaking and trespassing. On the 10th, he pleaded guilty to two of the charges, with the remaining charge to be considered during sentencing.
Investigations revealed that the accused arrived in Singapore as a tourist on December 5 last year and checked into a hotel in the Little India area. On his first visit to Singapore, the accused found the local environment beautiful and prosperous, which gave rise to his criminal intentions.
On December 6 last year, the accused went to the Sentosa area to scout for targets. He noticed a suite at Capella Hotel that had no lights on and guessed that no one was inside. He then forcibly opened the balcony window and snuck in to steal.
The accused subsequently rifled through the room and took a Chanel watch worth 30,000 SGD, five rings worth a total of 25,000 SGD, and a gold necklace worth 3,000 SGD, then returned to his own hotel.
The next evening, at around 7 pm, the accused went to the Serangoon area to look for another target. He noticed a bungalow in complete darkness and, after climbing over the gate, broke into the house, stealing jewelry worth a total of 47,750 SGD, including a pair of Tiffany wedding rings, a pendant, diamond earrings, a platinum necklace, a silver bracelet, and a gold necklace.
Having developed a taste for theft, the accused then targeted another residence. However, just after climbing over the gate and breaking in, he was startled by the housemaid and fled in a panic.
That night, the owner of the bungalow with the stolen wedding rings returned home to find the dressing table in disarray, realized that a large amount of valuable jewelry was missing, and immediately called the police.
The police eventually located the accused at a hotel on Kampong Bahru Road, arrested him on the spot, and recovered all the stolen jewelry.
Since the accused had just appointed a lawyer, the lawyer stated that more time was needed to prepare a plea for mitigation. The judge thus adjourned the case to August 14 for sentencing.