Burglar Allegedly Steals Tablet From Bedok Vietnamese Restaurant, Owner Seeks Its Return

Burglar Allegedly Steals Tablet From Bedok Vietnamese Restaurant

UPDATE (31 July): Ms Tran told MS News that the culprit has returned the tablet. Hence, she will not be reporting the case to the police.

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A burglar appears to enter a Bedok North Vietnamese restaurant at 12.55am on Tuesday (25 July) and steals a tablet.

The Vietnamese restaurant’s CCTV cameras recorded the entire incident.

An La Ghien-Com Tam owner, Ms Yuki Tran, requested for anyone who knows the thief ask him to return the tablet.

She added that the restaurant would report the case to the police if the stolen tablet isn’t returned within a week.

Speaking to MS News, Ms Tran noted that she gave the thief a week as she did not want to put them “in a corner”.

Bedok Vietnamese restaurant captures alleged thief on CCTV cameras

Ms Tran posted CCTV footage of the incident on the Complaint Singapore Facebook group.

The video lasts one minute and 22 seconds.

The man can be seen entering the restaurant, located at 527 Bedok North Street 3, #01-514 through the open back door.

The alleged thief is dressed in a long-sleeved shirt and long pants, with a waterproof bag slung on his shoulder. He is carrying a plastic bag and appears to be limping.

Entering slowly through the back door, the culprit looks around before moving towards the front of the restaurant.

The thief moves towards a counter at the front of the restaurant.

Noticing a tablet, he appears to activate it.

Then he picks up the tablet and places it in his bag.

After that, the burglar makes his exit through the back door. While walking towards the door, he attempts to hide his face and the tablet from the CCTV using his waterproof bag.

Puzzled netizens raise questions

One commenter opined that due to the prevalence of CCTVs in Singapore, it isn’t worth breaking and entering.

Others had questions about why the door was open at 12.55am.

Left door open for morning deliveries

Ms Tran told MS News that the restaurant had left the door open for early morning supply deliveries. She said that they did not want the delivered food to be sitting outside.

A theft had never occurred in the restaurant prior to this, she said.

She noted the restaurant’s staff lived on the second floor. One of her staff discovered the tablet’s disappearance at around 11.10am in the morning, when the restaurant opened.

Ms Tran explained that the restaurant’s Point of Sale (POS) system used three tablets. Restaurants use POS systems to process orders and transactions. The staff used the now-stolen tablet to view orders placed by customers.

To prevent future thefts, Ms Tran has instructed the staff to close the gate. The restaurant also implemented an additional shift at 7am to receive deliveries.

Owner of Bedok restaurant wants to ‘give thief a chance’

Ms Tran also explained that she gave the thief a week as she wanted to give them a chance instead of putting him “in a corner”.

She suggested that the thief was inexperienced as there were other valuables on the counter that were untouched.

Ms Tran added that the police had contacted her about the case, but she has decided to wait for the tablet’s return.

MS News hopes that Ms Tran and her restaurant will be able to get the tablet back.

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Featured image adapted from COMPLAINT SINGAPORE on Facebook and Com Tam An La Ghien – Authentic Vietnamese Cuisine at Bedok on Facebook.