4 Chilean nationals nabbed for theft cases

[Vultan]

Mar 22, 2011

4 Chilean nationals nabbed for theft cases

POLICE have arrested four Chilean men, who are believed to have committed a series of theft cases in the Orchard Road area and other shopping malls around Singapore.

More than $10,000 worth of items were recovered from the suspects aged between 29 and 39.

These include 16 mobile phones, nine cameras, three laptops, two media players, four branded handbags, one ATM card, one credit card and three bank books.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects are believed to be involved in at least 10 cases of theft after the victims had left their belongings out of sight or unattended in public areas.

Police are now identifying and contacting the rightful owners of the recovered stolen items.

All four suspects will be charged in court on Wednesday.

 

[ballsathome]

Police arrest four Chileans for suspected theft
Posted: 22 March 2011 1459 hrs
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SINGAPORE: Police have arrested four Chilean men, aged between 29 and 39, who are believed to have committed a series of theft cases involving more than S$10,000 worth of items.

They are believed to have pilfered from victims who had left their belongings out of sight or unattended.

Police said several cases of theft were reported in the vicinity of Orchard Road and other shopping malls in Singapore in the past week.

In these cases, items such as branded bags, laptops and mobile phones were stolen from unsuspecting victims whom had left them out of sight or unattended in public areas.

A joint task force comprising officers from Tanglin Police Division and Bedok Police Division was set up.

Following extensive enquiries and follow-up investigations, the officers managed to establish the identities of the suspects.

The four men entered Singapore a week ago on March 15 and 16 on a social visit pass. Three of them were visiting Singapore for the first time, while the 39-year-old man had come to Singapore once in 2004.

Police said they went through CCTV footages of shopping malls in Orchard Road where there was a spike in theft cases. That narrowed the search to four foreign-looking men.

Police officers then spotted the four suspects in Geylang on Monday afternoon when they were trying to get rid of plastic bag containing a passport and some cards.

The suspects were nabbed as they were returning to their hotel in Geylang.

Some postal receipts were also seized which helped trace four parcels containing the stolen goods that were posted earlier in the day.

Police recovered 16 mobile phones, nine cameras, three laptops, two media players, four branded handbags, one ATM card, one credit card and three bank books.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects are believed to be involved in at least 10 cases of theft.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Koh Yak Leng, Commander of Taglin Police Division, said: Police see two common tactics culprits go about stealing things. One of them is, they'll comb through the food courts and so on, and when people are distracted and they're not paying attention to their properties, they may just reach to steal their properties.

"Now, the second method is of course to distract the victim, and when the victim is distracted, an accomplice can come and steal his property. So with good collaboration with the Orchard Road business community, we managed to identify the suspects and then managed to arrest them even before they flee the country. And this resulted in us recovering all the properties."

Police are currently in the process of identifying and contacting the rightful owners of the recovered stolen items.

All four suspects will be charged in Court on Wednesday.

If convicted, they can be jailed for up to three years and fined.

This is the second South American syndicate to be arrested in 10 days. The first group is believed to specialise in house-breaking.

- CNA/fa/ac

 

[R y u]

Mar 23, 2011

Chileans charged with theft

By Elena Chong

Investigating officers inspect the loot of four Chilean men responsible for a spate of thefts in the shopping malls here. --PHOTO: ZAOBAO

FOUR Chilean nationals have been remanded for investigation after they were brought to court on Wednesday to face a theft charge.

Claudio Ivan Cuevas Osorio, 38, Cristian Jerardo Pina Lemnunir, 29, Cristian Eduardo Criado Ordonez, 34, and Jean Pierre Silva Rebolledo, 31, allegedly stole a Netbook and casing worth $549 from one Ang Jinting at Tangs store in Orchard Road on March 18.

The four, who were arrested at a hotel in Geylang on Monday, are believed to be involved in a series of theft cases involving more than $10,000 worth of items pilfered from victims.

They will appear in court again week.

If convicted, each of them faces a a jail term of up to three years or fine or both.

 

[Grand Moff Tarkin]

Apr 6, 2011

Foreign crime syndicate members jailed for theft

By Khushwant Singh

FOUR Chilean nationals who came here as tourists and were issued month-long social visit passes will now be here far longer. Each was jailed a year for theft by a district court on Wednesday.

When they pleaded guilty on March 31 earlier this year, they admitted to being members of a foreign crime syndicate.

The court then heard that Claudio Ivan Cuevas Osorio, 38, Cristian Jerardo Pina Lemunir, 29, Cristian Eduardo Criado Ordonez, 34, and Jean Pierre Silva Rebolledo, 31, were to post the stolen items back to Chile.

They had arrived here in mid-March and checked into Lai Ming Hotel Cosmoland in Geylang Road.

They would stalk shopping malls, foodcourts and restaurants in Orchard Road and Harbourfront, targeting those who hung their handbags on chairs and those who placed their cellphones and laptops on tables and nearby chairs.

Within a week, they had amassed nearly $10,000 worth of loot.

When police tracked them down on March 21, a postal receipt led to the discovery of four parcels at the Geylang SingPost office.

The boxes were packed with 16 mobile phones, nine cameras, three laptops, two media players, four branded handbags and several credit cards. More stolen items were recovered from their rooms.

[email protected]

 

[Zhuge Liang]

Apr 8, 2011

When shopping is a steal
Chilean gang of 4 pinched $10k worth of cash, goods at malls

By Tham Yuen-C

The quartet stole items ranging from laptops to cellphones and cameras. -- ST PHOTO: THAM YUEN-C

A DIFFERENT type of tourist has hit town, and he is not here to sightsee. Rather, he is in Singapore to steal from shops and shoppers. These foreign theft syndicates have been active in the past few months, especially in the shopping belt.

Over a span of one week, four Chilean men weaved in and out of boutiques and food courts, helping themselves to anything and everything from cellphones to laptops and wallets belonging to shoppers.

[email protected]

Read the full story in Friday's edition of The Straits Times.