Woman loses house key with Punggol home address written on keychain; man robs their home after finding key, S$10K worth of items lost in 17 minutes

A man found a key with the address on the keychain and decided to break into the flat to steal items from the homeowners. The homeowners were outside their Punggol flat when the wife lost her bag containing their house keys.

Wang Bingshi, 48, then stumbled on the bag on May 6 this year, according to Chinese language newspaper Shin Min Daily News on Wednesday (Nov 23). Wang picked up the bag and checked what was inside. He saw the keys and a corresponding address is written on the keychain.

Wang visited the address and stopped by the entryway to inspect the surroundings. He spotted CCTV cameras at the entrance. He got to work removing the cameras to avoid detection before using the keys to break into the flat.

It was reported that Wang spent 17 minutes inside and stole S$9,796 worth of items from the property. He stole 26 pieces of gold jewellery, cash, a tablet, and the CCTV cameras he had previously removed.

Wang pleaded guilty to charges of breaking and entering and embezzlement of property. Police investigations revealed that Wang had also robbed a man of his wallet at the Punggol Waterfront Square bicycle park earlier in the morning. Wang was sentenced to one year, six months and two weeks imprisonment.

Those guilty of house-breaking for criminal trespass can be sentenced to up to three months imprisonment, fined up to S$1,500, or both. For theft, offenders may be sentenced to jail for up to three years, fined, or both. /TISG

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