SINGAPORE: Facing mounting debts from loan sharks, a former AETOS auxiliary officer decided to replicate the Standard Chartered robbery and took his revolver with him to rob a licensed moneylender of about S$24,800.
Mahadi Muhamad Mukhtar, 39, was sentenced to 16 years and six months' jail as well as 18 strokes of the cane on Tuesday (Sep 13). He pleaded guilty to three charges of robbery, unlawfully carrying a revolver and unlawful possession of ammunition. Another two charges were taken into consideration.
The court heard that Mahadi was employed at AETOS holdings as an auxiliary police officer. He began borrowing money from unlicensed moneylenders in February 2021 to pay off his bank loan.
His debts accumulated with six unlicensed moneylenders, and he began borrowing from his friends and taking bank loans. Eventually, he decided to commit robbery to solve his financial problems, the court heard.
He began researching robberies on the Internet. At first, he thought of robbing a jewellery shop, but thought it would be difficult to sell the jewellery.
He decided to rob a licensed moneylender and settled on OT Credit, as it was staffed by women, was not usually crowded and had previously been robbed.
On Apr 12 last year, he went to OT Credit at Block 135, Jurong Gateway Road to ensure it was open for business. He saw that it was, and that two female employees were on duty.
After this, he went to AETOS complex to cover a colleague's shift. Later that afternoon, he loaded five rounds of ammunition into his M85 Taurus revolver and placed it in his sling bag.
He changed out of his AETOS shirt into a dark blue polo to avoid being identified before taking a Grab ride to JCube shopping centre with the loaded revolver in his bag.
Mahadi went to OT Credit and saw only one female employee and one customer in the store. He thought about how he would demand the money and decided to copy the approach in the Standard Chartered robbery by writing his demands on a note.
In the 2016 Standard Chartered robbery, Canadian James Roach handed a note to a bank teller and placed his hand in a sling bag on the counter, pretending it was a gun.
The note by Roach said: "This is a robbery. I have a gun in my bag." The bank teller handed Roach about S$30,000 and he fled the country with it. He was taken back to Singapore and sentenced to five years' jail and six strokes of the cane last year.
"DON'T SHOUT"
Mahadi went to a toilet and transferred the revolver from his bag to his front pocket. He wrote on a piece of paper: "This is a robbery. Don't shout. I got gun in my pocket. Put all the money in the bag."
He then went to OT Credit and handed the message to a female credit loan officer who was on duty.
Fearing for her life, she hit the panic button under the table before complying with Mahadi's instruction to put money inside his sling bag.
Mahadi left the store with about S$24,800 in his sling bag and booked a GrabCar. He boarded the vehicle at the Science Centre and changed his destination from AETOS complex to Boon Lay Shopping Centre.
He deposited S$10,000 at an OCBC ATM, and another S$14,000 into a POSB bank account. He made four online banking transactions transferring about S$11,150 to loan sharks, and threw away the robbery note after tearing it up.
At 4.50pm, he boarded an AETOS van and went to work. He was arrested by the police a few hours later at AETOS Complex.
The bulk of the robbery proceeds were recovered, but no restitution was made of the remainder, which amounts to about S$5,000.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Timotheus Koh asked for 15 to 20 years' jail and 18 strokes of the cane. He emphasised the severity of the case, saying: "This is a case where an auxiliary police officer makes off with his loaded service revolver and brings it with him to commit a serious crime, a robbery."
He said there was a pressing public interest to guard against such crimes, noting the abuse of trust by Mahadi, who had been entrusted with a firearm for his duties.
There was also a high level of premeditation and planning as seen from his Internet searches and considering of various options to commit the robbery as well as surveillance of his chosen target, said Mr Koh.
Comparing the case with James Roach's Standard Chartered robbery, Mr Koh said that Roach was bluffing, as he had no weapon on him, but Mahadi was not bluffing.
"Correspondingly, there will be a real risk of serious harm while there was none in James Roach," said Mr Koh.
"We note that concern that the accused had copied the James Roach robbery, and this signals that the sentence in the James Roach robbery is not severe enough to send a message that such behaviour is not acceptable," said Mr Koh, adding that a stronger message needs to be sent.
Defence lawyer Mark Yeo of Kalco Law asked instead for 10 years' jail and 18 strokes of the cane, the mandatory minimum. He said his client had no prior convictions and had cooperated with the police and confessed everything. Even though he had disposed of the note, it was still recovered in full.
Comparing the case to Roach's, Mr Yeo said Roach's case involved a higher value of cash. Not only did he write that he had a gun in his bag, Roach "deliberately presented himself in a way that led the victim to believe that he did have a weapon", said Mr Yeo.
He said the sentence the prosecution was asking for was manifestly excessive, adding that his client may have committed serious offences but "is not beyond redemption".
"His conduct prior to and after the arrest shows he has a strong chance of rehabilitation," said the lawyer.
Justice Vincent Hoong said he found that the harm disclosed in this case was substantial, given that the accused had armed himself with a loaded revolver capable of inflicting serious harm on others.
He said he noted Mahadi's plea of guilt, his cooperation with authorities and lack of past convictions, but placed no weight on the fact that Mahadi was moved by his financial difficulties to commit the crimes.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/sin...urong-gun-ot-credit-jail-caning-court-2934541
