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Prosecution pushes for stiffer sentence for in-flight thief
SINGAPORE: Prosecution has pushed for 12 months' jail for a man convicted of theft on board an aircraft.
This is a much stiffer sentence than its initial submission of 12 weeks' imprisonment.
32-year-old Yue Liangfu might be the first to receive the harsher punishment.
The Chinese national was found guilty of stealing a brown trolley bag belonging to 69-year-old Cambodian Kuy Touch during a SilkAir flight from Singapore to Phnom Penh on 8 June 2013.
In her submissions, prosecutor Krystle Chiang explained the move to ask for a higher sentence.
She said there has been "a significant upward trend" in such theft cases over the past two years.
In 2011, only one individual was arrested for theft on board an aircraft.
In the same year, there was only one such reported case.
Last year, the total number of cases reported shot up to 43 and 36 individuals were arrested.
This year, there have been 35 reported cases so far and 26 individuals have been arrested.
Besides the rise in the number of cases, the prosecution also noted that there are one or more organised crime syndicates targeting Singapore-controlled aircrafts.
Senior District Judge See Kee Oon noted the rising trend and accepted the prosecution's new submissions.
He said from his own experience, the courts have not given sentences exceeding three months for such offences.
But the judge added that he is minded to review the sentencing benchmark as such cases are on the rise.
Yue is expected to be sentenced on 23 July.
The highest penalty is a jail term of three years and a fine. - CNA/xq
SINGAPORE: A Chinese national has become the first to be sentenced to nine months' jail, the harshest punishment meted out so far, for theft on board an aircraft.
On July 19, 32-year-old Yue Liangfu was found guilty of stealing a brown trolley bag belonging to 69-year-old Cambodian, Kuy Touch, during a SilkAir flight from Singapore to Phnom Penh on June 8.
The prosecution had at that time pushed for a higher jail term of 12 months, a far stiffer punishment than its initial submission of 12 weeks.
Previously, prosecutor Krystle Chiang explained that there has been "a significant upward trend" in such theft cases over the past two years.
In 2011, only one individual was arrested for theft onboard an aircraft. That same year, there was only one such reported case. However in 2012, the total number of cases reported shot up to 43, with 36 individuals arrested.
This year alone, there have been 36 reported cases so far and 28 individuals arrested.
On Tuesday, Senior District Judge See Kee Oon said the sentences passed in 2013 for similar cases ranged from six to 12 weeks' imprisonment.
He noted the difficulty in detecting such offences and the rise in such cases.
Judge See also said Yue had pre-meditation and was not cooperative upon his arrest. Yue had initially claimed trial but decided to plead guilty after realising there was a video clip of his actions.
The judge added that Yue knew "the game was up" and so he saw no mitigating value in the accused's plea.
In sentencing, the judge said nine months' jail "is the starting point" for such offences. He said if there had been additional factors, including evidence of syndicated crime, the range would be 12 months' jail.
The highest penalty is a jail term of three years and a fine. - CNA/ac
