2 men allegedly swapped diamond with fake one at Chinatown jewellery store
Two men were arrested on Friday (19 June) after they allegedly stole a diamond worth more than S$235,000 from a jewellery store in Chinatown.
They allegedly did this by swapping the diamond with a fake one, said the Singapore Police Force (SPF) in a news release sent to MS News.
Source: Singapore Police Force
Men allegedly swapped diamond while examining it at Chinatown shop
The two men visited the store along Kreta Ayer Road on Friday, SPF said.
They showed interest in purchasing the diamond and were allowed to examine it, according to preliminary investigations.
Source: Singapore Police Force
But while doing so, they replaced it with a fake one and left the shop without making any purchases.
Shop assistant discovers fake diamond
Their behaviour caused a shop assistant to become suspicious.
He checked the diamond and discovered that it had been replaced with a fake.
The police were called at about 3.40pm.
Men arrested at Changi Airport within 3 hours
Officers from the Central Police Division and Police Operations Command Centre carried out extensive follow-up investigations, which included conducting ground enquiries and viewing images from CCTV and police cameras.
They identified the two men, aged 30 and 42, who were arrested at Changi Airport Terminal 3 within three hours of the report being made.
Source: Singapore Police Force
The diamond was recovered and seized as evidence.
Both charged with theft in dwelling
On Saturday (20 June), both men were charged in court for the offence of theft in dwelling with common intention under Section 380 read with Section 34 of the Penal Code 1871.
Section 34 states that when a criminal act is committed by several persons in furtherance of the common intention of all, each person is liable for that act in the same manner as if the act were done by him alone.
Thus, if convicted, they each face a jail term of up to seven years and/or a fine.
SPF advises luxury shop owners to be vigilant
SPF said it has “zero tolerance” for such crimes; thus, it will “spare no effort” to nab offenders and deal with them according to the law.
It also alerted owners of shops selling luxury items to be vigilant against potential thieves with similar means of operation.
They should guard against such sleight-of-hand thefts, it added.
Also read: 14-Year-Old Boy Allegedly Takes Gold Chains From Chinatown Jewellery Store, Gets Arrested
14-Year-Old Boy Allegedly Takes Gold Chains From Chinatown Jewellery Store, Gets Arrested
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Featured image adapted from Singapore Police Force.
