“I have a weapon”, robber warns StanChart teller to loot $30,000

Standard Chartered bank’s Holland Village branch was robbed on July 7 morning at about 11.25am, and according to Shin Min Daily News this was the note the robber handed to the bank teller before she quickly handed him $30,000.

From the various reports in the newspapers and social media, it is established that the suspect is is a tall, skinny, Ang Moh Australian who was wearing a grey hoodie and mustard-coloured pants. There were no security at the bank when the robbery occurred.

Since the robbery, most banks in the Holland Village area have beefed up their security. It is unclear why the banks in the area chose not to invest in good security before the robbery. It could be because of a false sense of security since bank robberies in Singapore are almost unheard off. Or it could be because of cost cutting measures.

The Business Times reported in March 2016 that Singapore banks are in for tough times in 2016. StanChart had said to the reporters at that time that it had provided for 0.7 time of bad loans, after including collateral value.