- Joined
- Sep 15, 2011
- Messages
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Monday, Aug 27, 2012
SHE has had what may be urine and faeces thrown at her door eight times in the last two weeks.
The fifth-storey resident of Block 966, Hougang Avenue 9, Madam Tina Lo, said she initially thought it was an accident.
"I thought it might have been a stray cat which made the mess," the sales executive officer told The New Paper in Mandarin last night.
But what the 47-year-old allegedly found in front of her door last Thursday evening changed her mind.
"Dishwashing liquid had been poured all over the ground and there were grains of rice everywhere. I suspected that it was a prank, so I told the police," she said.
She then decided to write a warning notice, which she pasted on her gate.
The note, written in both English and Chinese, read: "If anyone is trying to play a prank on this door (sic), please stop your action. We've reported to Police already and if you continue to do so, you will be facing the law (sic)."
Despite this, she continued to receive the unwanted "gifts". Cat droppings were allegedly placed at her doorstep last week.
Frustrated, Madam Lo decided to take matters into her own hands.
She installed a $400 closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera at the front of her home last Friday.
On Monday, she discovered smelly large brown lumps which closely resembled human faeces, said Madam Lo.
When she reviewed the footage on Monday and Tuesday, she discovered that the culprit was a stranger who appeared to be in her mid-50s. The videos showed a plump woman with short hair walking towards Madam Lo's home.
She carried either a bottle allegedly containing urine or a plastic bag of faeces.
Said Madam Lo: "I've never seen her before, but my neighbour said she looked very familiar.
She roped in five of her colleagues, including Mr Ty Sng, 40, and conducted a stake-out.
At about 11am on Wednesday, they hid in the staircase outside Madam Lo's unit.
Mr Sng said: "I just sat there and played with my iPhone. There were several neighbours who asked if we were cops."
After they waited for more than three hours, the alleged culprit finally arrived.
Only Mr Sng was keeping a lookout at that time as his colleagues were having lunch in the flat.
He said: "As soon as she walked out of the lift, I knew it was her. She tried to make a U-turn, but I quickly blocked her path."
His colleagues arrived and confirmed it was her before calling the police.
When the police arrived, the woman said she lived in a unit on the fourth storey.
A police spokesman said they were alerted to the incident at about 2.30pm.
He added that a woman was arrested and they believe she is of unsound mind.
She has since been released to the care of her next-of-kin.
Neighbours The New Paper spoke to said the woman was unfamiliar to them.
Said Mrs N. Khan, who is in her mid-30s and lives on the fourth storey: "I've never spoken to her, but my kid has seen her loitering around the lift lobby.
"She would press the call buttons for the lift and then just walk away."
TNP visited the woman's unit yesterday, but she was not at home. Her son, who appeared to be in his 30s, said their family has been living there for more than 10 years and that his mother was doing well.
He declined to comment further.
Madam Lo said she was still worried that the woman might visit her unit again, but was thankful for the support of her neighbours.
She said: "They helped me to clean up the mess and not once did they complain about the smell.
"I'm very grateful for that."
SHE has had what may be urine and faeces thrown at her door eight times in the last two weeks.
The fifth-storey resident of Block 966, Hougang Avenue 9, Madam Tina Lo, said she initially thought it was an accident.
"I thought it might have been a stray cat which made the mess," the sales executive officer told The New Paper in Mandarin last night.
But what the 47-year-old allegedly found in front of her door last Thursday evening changed her mind.
"Dishwashing liquid had been poured all over the ground and there were grains of rice everywhere. I suspected that it was a prank, so I told the police," she said.
She then decided to write a warning notice, which she pasted on her gate.
The note, written in both English and Chinese, read: "If anyone is trying to play a prank on this door (sic), please stop your action. We've reported to Police already and if you continue to do so, you will be facing the law (sic)."
Despite this, she continued to receive the unwanted "gifts". Cat droppings were allegedly placed at her doorstep last week.
Frustrated, Madam Lo decided to take matters into her own hands.
She installed a $400 closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera at the front of her home last Friday.
On Monday, she discovered smelly large brown lumps which closely resembled human faeces, said Madam Lo.
When she reviewed the footage on Monday and Tuesday, she discovered that the culprit was a stranger who appeared to be in her mid-50s. The videos showed a plump woman with short hair walking towards Madam Lo's home.
She carried either a bottle allegedly containing urine or a plastic bag of faeces.
Said Madam Lo: "I've never seen her before, but my neighbour said she looked very familiar.
She roped in five of her colleagues, including Mr Ty Sng, 40, and conducted a stake-out.
At about 11am on Wednesday, they hid in the staircase outside Madam Lo's unit.
Mr Sng said: "I just sat there and played with my iPhone. There were several neighbours who asked if we were cops."
After they waited for more than three hours, the alleged culprit finally arrived.
Only Mr Sng was keeping a lookout at that time as his colleagues were having lunch in the flat.
He said: "As soon as she walked out of the lift, I knew it was her. She tried to make a U-turn, but I quickly blocked her path."
His colleagues arrived and confirmed it was her before calling the police.
When the police arrived, the woman said she lived in a unit on the fourth storey.
A police spokesman said they were alerted to the incident at about 2.30pm.
He added that a woman was arrested and they believe she is of unsound mind.
She has since been released to the care of her next-of-kin.
Neighbours The New Paper spoke to said the woman was unfamiliar to them.
Said Mrs N. Khan, who is in her mid-30s and lives on the fourth storey: "I've never spoken to her, but my kid has seen her loitering around the lift lobby.
"She would press the call buttons for the lift and then just walk away."
TNP visited the woman's unit yesterday, but she was not at home. Her son, who appeared to be in his 30s, said their family has been living there for more than 10 years and that his mother was doing well.
He declined to comment further.
Madam Lo said she was still worried that the woman might visit her unit again, but was thankful for the support of her neighbours.
She said: "They helped me to clean up the mess and not once did they complain about the smell.
"I'm very grateful for that."
