Apr 20, 2010
Serial housebreaker caught
<!-- by line --> By Lin Yingxin <== FTrash
Crime prevention tips
Commander of Ang Mo Kio Police Division, Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Police Hsu Sin Yun advises home owners to adopt basic crime prevention measures in their homes.
Here are some basic tips:
*Install good quality locks and grilles to secure your doors and windows
*Lock your doors and windows at all times, especially before retiring to bed or when leaving your home unattended, even if it is only for a short while
*Install a burglar alarm or CCTV system
*Keep large sums of cash in banks and expensive jewellery in a safe deposit box
*Keep a lookout for one another's home, and report suspicious activities to the Police immediately
A 35-YEAR-OLD Chinese national, who is believed to be involved in at least 40 cases of break-ins, has been arrested by the police. The offences were committed mainly at private homes in the the Rosyth and Seletar Hills estates. The spate of break-ins in the area was reported between last December and April this year. Most of these cases occurred between 10 pm and 5 am. The suspect was believed to have scaled the perimeter fencing or walls of the premises and entered the units via the unlocked sliding glass doors located at the rear of the compounds. In all, cash and other valuables totalling about $21,000 were stolen.
Pursuing all available leads relentlessly, officers from the Ang Mo Kio Police Division conducted a detailed crime analysis and mounted multiple ambushes in the affected estates. The culprit was elusive, but the officers' efforts finally paid off on Monday at about 1.30 am, when they spotted a suspect climbing over the wall of a private estate in the vicinity of the Mimosa Terrace. The officers quickly sealed off all possible escape routes and moved in on the suspect. He was caught before he could flee. The suspect will be charged Tuesday for housebreaking and theft by night. If convicted, he faces a jail term of up to 14 years.
