Friday, Sep 07, 2012
The thief was fast, but his pursuer was a faster thinker.
Mr Ravi Chandran, 38, who runs a newsstand in Little India, had heard of theft cases in the area, but it had never happened to him before.
When he did become a victim of theft on Monday night, he reacted quickly.
He ran after the thief barefoot and eventually caught him about 100m away, after guessing the route the thief would take and cutting him off.
Mr Ravi sells newspapers, phone cards and snacks and drinks at his father's stall, which he has managed for 15 years at the bus stop in front of Tekka Centre.
His customers are mainly tourists and the crowd passing by the busy spot in Little India.
At about 10.15pm on Monday, he was preparing to close his stall for the night when he heard the sounds of a scuffle.
Thinking that it was a fight between drunks, he did not think much about it until he heard someone shouting his name.
He rushed out and found his employee, Chan Chwee Teck, 62, lying on the ground about 50m away and a man running off with a plastic bag, which he recognised immediately as the bag in which he kept valuables.
Mr Chan, who had given chase, fell down when the thief tried to swing the bag at him to shake him off.
Mr Ravi had earlier placed the bag, which contained S$5,200 cash and S$9,900 worth of phone cards, on the floor inside the stall.
He sprinted after the man.
Mr Ravi said: "At that moment, all I knew is that I must catch him.
"I threw my slippers to one side and just ran as fast as I could. I had no choice, if I wear my slippers, I cannot run fast."
Mr Ravi saw the man running off into a small square nearby and decided to block his exit path by going round and running ahead of him.
Minutes later, he saw the same man walking out, without the bag.
Mr Ravi told The New Paper (TNP) on tuesday: "He was trying to pretend and just walk away. I held him by the shirt and demanded that he show me where he threw the bag."
After a struggle, the man finally showed Mr Ravi the bag, with all the valuables intact, hidden in a bush.
Mr Ravi said: "I felt sorry for him. I asked him why are you so stupid, why must you steal? He told me he had no money. But when I asked him to show me his wallet, it was filled with S$50 and S$10 notes."
The whole incident took about 15 minutes.
He called the police immediately and took the man in an armlock back to his stall where a small crowd had gathered. They helped watch the man until the police came.
Meanwhile, Mr Chan said he had hurt himself while chasing the thief, but luckily, his boss was a fast runner.
Mr Chan said: "The man just appeared in front of me, grabbed the bag and ran. I ran after him immediately."
Mr Ravi said he has learnt his lesson and will never keep so much cash at his stall again.
He said: "From now on, I will deposit my cash in the bank more often."
The police confirmed that a man in his late 30s was arrested. Investigations are ongoing.
"I felt sorry for him. I asked him why are you so stupid, why must you steal?"
- Mr Ravi Chandran, who runs a newsstand in Little India
The thief was fast, but his pursuer was a faster thinker.
Mr Ravi Chandran, 38, who runs a newsstand in Little India, had heard of theft cases in the area, but it had never happened to him before.
When he did become a victim of theft on Monday night, he reacted quickly.
He ran after the thief barefoot and eventually caught him about 100m away, after guessing the route the thief would take and cutting him off.
Mr Ravi sells newspapers, phone cards and snacks and drinks at his father's stall, which he has managed for 15 years at the bus stop in front of Tekka Centre.
His customers are mainly tourists and the crowd passing by the busy spot in Little India.
At about 10.15pm on Monday, he was preparing to close his stall for the night when he heard the sounds of a scuffle.
Thinking that it was a fight between drunks, he did not think much about it until he heard someone shouting his name.
He rushed out and found his employee, Chan Chwee Teck, 62, lying on the ground about 50m away and a man running off with a plastic bag, which he recognised immediately as the bag in which he kept valuables.
Mr Chan, who had given chase, fell down when the thief tried to swing the bag at him to shake him off.
Mr Ravi had earlier placed the bag, which contained S$5,200 cash and S$9,900 worth of phone cards, on the floor inside the stall.
He sprinted after the man.
Mr Ravi said: "At that moment, all I knew is that I must catch him.
"I threw my slippers to one side and just ran as fast as I could. I had no choice, if I wear my slippers, I cannot run fast."
Mr Ravi saw the man running off into a small square nearby and decided to block his exit path by going round and running ahead of him.
Minutes later, he saw the same man walking out, without the bag.
Mr Ravi told The New Paper (TNP) on tuesday: "He was trying to pretend and just walk away. I held him by the shirt and demanded that he show me where he threw the bag."
After a struggle, the man finally showed Mr Ravi the bag, with all the valuables intact, hidden in a bush.
Mr Ravi said: "I felt sorry for him. I asked him why are you so stupid, why must you steal? He told me he had no money. But when I asked him to show me his wallet, it was filled with S$50 and S$10 notes."
The whole incident took about 15 minutes.
He called the police immediately and took the man in an armlock back to his stall where a small crowd had gathered. They helped watch the man until the police came.
Meanwhile, Mr Chan said he had hurt himself while chasing the thief, but luckily, his boss was a fast runner.
Mr Chan said: "The man just appeared in front of me, grabbed the bag and ran. I ran after him immediately."
Mr Ravi said he has learnt his lesson and will never keep so much cash at his stall again.
He said: "From now on, I will deposit my cash in the bank more often."
The police confirmed that a man in his late 30s was arrested. Investigations are ongoing.
"I felt sorry for him. I asked him why are you so stupid, why must you steal?"
- Mr Ravi Chandran, who runs a newsstand in Little India
