A man who posed as a National Environment Agency (NEA) officer conducting a check for mosquitoes at a Bukit Batok semi-detached terrace, before robbing the homeowners of posessions worth over $110,000, was sentenced to 4 years 9 months’ jail and 6 strokes of the cane, this week.
According to the Chinese daily, the 42-year-old man, Khoo Wei Chyi, had worked with 4 other accomplices when carrying out the robbery in 2010. The five culprits had told the owners of the Bukit Batok home that they would be checking the home for potential mosquito breeding areas.
Once inside the home, Khoo reportedly whipped out a knife and threatened the middle-aged home owner, her 9-year-old daughter, and domestic helper, before tying the trio up with cable ties. He reportedly told the victims that he and his accomplices “just wanted money.”
Khoo and gang used tools such as crowbars to pry open two safes in the home and fled with a loot worth $112,792.
Although the crime occurred on 22 Sept 2010, the culprit was only sentenced on Tuesday because he fled Singapore while he was out on bail.
When Khoo failed to turn up for a hearing in July 2011, his passport was impounded. Nevertheless, he managed to flee to Indonesia after paying a crime syndicate $5000 to smuggle him out of the country.
After six years of hiding out in Indonesia, Khoo was arrested in Batam for overstaying in January 2017. He was extradited to Singapore three months later, in April, after serving his sentence in Batam.
Khoo was charged with armed robbery and the breach of travel restrictions, in court. His accomplices were given a shorter jail term of 3 years and 6 strokes of the cane each since they did not flee the country.