20 yo woman says parents accused her of ‘theft’ after she moved out with gifted phone and laptop

SINGAPORE: A 20-year-old woman has alleged that her parents threatened to report her to the police for “theft” after she moved out with a phone and a laptop that they had previously purchased for her.

In a Reddit post published on Wednesday (July 2), the woman stated that she had recently left her family home and did not intend to return. She brought with her a phone and a laptop, which had either been gifted to her or bought for her by her parents when she was still residing with them. According to her, these items had long been treated as her personal belongings.

After she left, however, her parents reportedly demanded that she return the items and warned they would report her for theft, claiming the devices belonged to them since they were the ones who paid for them.

“Can they actually report me for theft? Do they have any legal ground to stand on if the items were considered gifts? Will there be any consequences for me when the items were given to me in the past?” she asked other locals.

In an earlier post, she also revealed that she left the house after discovering a hidden camera in her room.

“[It was] under my table. I have no idea how long it had been there; it was a bit dusty, so probably at least two weeks. It had an SD card, but I couldn’t read it on my laptop or pc. I felt so grossed out and hid the camera in my drawer. Two days later, it was gone,” she said.

“1.5 weeks later, I found it again. This time in a different spot in my room, positioned where it could see everything. I gave it to a friend to hold onto for now. I’ve never felt safe at home, and this just made everything a billion times worse. I feel sick thinking that someone in my own family, probably the people who literally made me, might have been watching me in my own room,” she added.

“I pray for you to be much, much better than your parents to your future family.”

Her story sparked strong reactions online, with many netizens expressing disbelief that her parents would go so far as to threaten police action over a family matter.

One person said that if the items were given as gifts, then they legally belonged to her. They added that the police would likely not get involved in something like this, as it is more of a civil matter. “The police are also not stupid,” they continued. “If they really go report police, then you can officially cut them off.”

Another commenter shared a similar view, writing, “Your parents can report, but the police won’t bother with this kind of domestic dispute. At most, I advise you guys to go for family counselling.”

A third commented, “I don’t know what kind of stunt your parents are pulling. I see literally zero reason why they would want to accuse you of stealing just because you are now independent. I really hope you can cope with their nonsense because it hurts me to read this. I pray for you to be much, much better than your parents to your future family.”

What the law says about theft

According to Section 378 of Singapore’s Penal Code, theft occurs when someone dishonestly takes movable property out of another person’s possession without their consent.

Singapore Legal Advice further explains that “possession” means having control over the item, not just physically holding it. This means that if the item was no longer under the owner’s control at the time it was taken, it would not be considered theft.

Read also: First-time employer vents about maid’s ‘general slowness’ and forgetfulness, asks Singaporeans for advice

Featured image by Depositphotos (for illustration purposes only)