A 32-year-old Bangladeshi man broke into two vacant Junior Colleges to steal copper wires and electrical cables to sell to recycling shops.
The man, named Miah Shobus, pleaded guilty on Tuesday (Dec 20), a day before his trial was scheduled to start, to four charges of house-breaking to commit theft.
Shobus and his two accomplices, Bangladeshi Jan Shak Mohabbat and Singaporean Om Shakti Tiwari, broke into Jurong Junior College (JJC) and Tampines Junior College (TPJC) in 2020.
The first incident was in January 2020 at JJC. Tiwari waited in the car while the other two climbed over the perimeter fence.
After breaking the padlock to the main consumer switch, the two cut the copper wires and brought their haul to the car.
The trio returned later that month and stole more copper wires. A power trip at the guard room shed light on the missing 1,000 metres of copper wires worth S$20,000.
In March 2020, the trip went to the vacant TPJC campus. Shobus and Mohabbat created a hole in the fence to access the school and cut electrical cables. They returned a month later and took more cables, including those from the ceilings, electrical raisers and Air Handling Unit room.
The trio’s actions resulted in damages worth S$1.24 million to repair, reported Mothership.
Tiwari sold 994kg of electrical cables to a recycling shop for S$3,976 and 773kg of electrical wires for S$3,478. He shared the profit with Shobus and Mohabbat.
Police identified Mohobbat through DNA analysis of saliva on a bottle left at JJC. Shobus was identified Shobus through HDB polcam images.
Meanwhile, eyewitnesses confirmed Tiwari’s car at the theft locations, which initiated police tracking.
Tiwari and Mohabbat were arrested on Apr 23, 2020.
“The damages caused were extensive,” said Deputy Public Prosecutor Ong Xin Jie, who sought 34 months imprisonment for Shobus.
“Moreover, JJC and TPJC are properties owned by MOE (Ministry of Education). Public funds will have to be utilised to repair the damage caused.”
Ong noted that Shobus’ offences were done out of greed and for personal gain. Furthermore, he only pleaded guilty on the very eve of the trial.
Netizens commented on the news, suggesting that Shobus should work to pay back the repair. “Jailing him will only use taxpayers’ money to feed him again,” said Facebook user Chia HuanSeng.
Others wondered how the trio got away with stealing a sizeable amount of electrical wiring without anyone noticing./TISG