Two jailed for housebreaking and theft at Yishun flats
Goh Choon Wee, 22, was given two years' jail while 25-year-old Yeo Pei Zhuang got nine months.
Published 6 hours ago
Elena Chong
Court Correspondent
SINGAPORE - Two people were jailed on Tuesday for breaking into common corridor flats in Yishun and stealing $28,500 worth of valuables.
Goh Choon Wee, 22, was given two years' jail while 25-year-old Yeo Pei Zhuang got nine months after they admitted to three charges each.
The case against their alleged accomplice, Chia Kun Dian, 22, is pending.
The duo committed housebreaking and theft of four watches, cash of about $50, a branded handbag, medication and a thumbdrive amounting to a total of over $23,000 from Mr Ng Boon Ngee, 48, at his flat in Yishun Avenue 11 on Dec 13 last year.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Zulhafni Zulkeflee said Mr Ng had left home for work at about noon on Dec 12. He returned in the early hours the next day and went to sleep without checking his home.
It was only at about 1pm that he found four watches missing from a display box in one of his rooms. Several other items were also missing from the room. He called the police.
Investigation showed that he did not lock his sliding window.
Two watches, including a $13,000 Panarai chronograph, and a $3,000 Louis Vuitton handbag were recovered from Yeo's home.
Three days later, the duo acted as lookouts while Chia allegedly entered Ms Huang Dan's unit through the unlocked common corridor window and stole the 31-year-old's mobile phone and camera worth a total of $1,799. Ms Huang was on holiday in China at the time and the items were later recovered from Yeo's home.
On Dec 12 at about 4am, Goh, together with Yeo, kept a lookout while Chia allegedly placed his hands through the common corridor window and stole Mr Xu Zongming's cellphone worth $260. The 21-year-old had left the phone on the table beside his bed while charging it before going to bed.
In another case, a taxi driver called the police on Dec 29 after noticing three youngsters loitering suspiciously along the common corridor of Block 625 Yishun Street 61.
The trio were seen going from door to door trying to open the windows of units.Police officers came and arrested Yeo and her accomplices for loitering.
Last month, both Yeo and Goh made restitution of $3,428 each.
Goh and Yeo could have been jailed for up to 10 years on each charge of housebreaking and theft.
