A 47-year-old American man has been arrested after allegedly stealing six boxes of perfume from five shops in Changi Airport over two separate visits to Singapore.
He was finally nabbed 11 months after his first alleged theft, having evaded capture twice by departing the country, said the Singapore Police Force (SPF) in a news release on Wednesday (7 Oct).
Source: Google Maps
On 5 Nov 2025, a retail assistant at a shop in the Changi Airport Terminal 3 transit area found that a box of perfume was missing from a display shelf.
CCTV footage showed that a man had entered the shop at about 7.38pm the night before and taken a box of perfume valued at S$331.
He then left the outlet without making payment.
Source: Singapore Police Force
The police were alerted at about 11.58am that day.
When further investigations were conducted, the same man was determined to have allegedly taken three more boxes of perfume later that day.
The items, which were worth a total of S$646, were removed from two other shops in the Terminal 2 transit area.
Similarly, he left the shops without making payment.
Source: Singapore Police Force
Officers from the Airport Police Division managed to identify the man, but he had already departed Singapore by that time.
However, the man returned to Singapore about six months later, at about 7.07am on 24 April this year, to catch a connecting flight.
This time, he allegedly took two more boxes of perfume from two separate shops in Changi Airport and left without making payment, according to preliminary investigations.
At about 7.15am, he allegedly took a box of perfume valued at S$236.90.
Source: Singapore Police Force
Just 6 minutes later at 7.21am, he allegedly took a box of perfume valued at S$195.40.
Source: Singapore Police Force
He then departed Singapore again.
The third time the American came to Singapore, the police were prepared.
In a planned operation, officers were waiting for him when he transited through Changi Airport on 25 Sept.
The 47-year-old was finally arrested for his alleged involvement in a series of shop thefts in the transit areas of Changi Airport.
On Thursday (8 Oct), the American will be charged with five counts of theft in dwelling under Section 380 of the Penal Code 1871.
If convicted, he faces a prison term of up to seven years and/or a fine for each charge.
SPF said it takes “a serious view” of shop theft and will deal “firmly” with offenders “in accordance with the law”.
It pledged to continue working closely with airport stakeholders to prevent, detect and deter shop theft at Changi Airport, adding:
Offenders should not assume that leaving Singapore after committing an offence will allow them to evade the law.
Also read: 2 men charged after allegedly stealing boxes of perfume from Changi Airport, 1 nabbed 9 months later
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Featured image adapted from Singapore Police Force.