SINGAPORE, Oct 7 — The long arm of the law caught up with a 47-year-old American on September 25, about 10 months after he allegedly stole from several shops in the transit areas of Changi Airport.
Police said today that the alleged theft cases took place in November 2025 and April this year.
He first allegedly stole from a retail outlet in the transit area of Changi Airport Terminal 3 at about 7.40pm on November 4, 2025.
The American was seen on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage removing a box of perfume valued at S$331 (RM1,066) from a display shelf and leaving the outlet without paying.
He is said to have taken three more boxes of perfume, with a total value of S$646, from another two retail outlets in the transit area of Terminal 2 on the same day.
The police said their officers from the Airport Police Division managed to establish the man’s identity but he had already departed Singapore.
At about 7.05am on April 26, he returned to Changi Airport for a connecting flight, and took a box of perfume valued at S$236.90 from a retail outlet, and another box of perfume worth S$195.40 from another outlet.
The alleged thefts took place over a six-minute period between 7.15am and 7.21am.
In total, he stole six boxes of perfumes worth more than S$1,400.
The American was eventually arrested in a planned operation on September 25, when he transited through Changi Airport again.
He will be charged in court tomorrow with five counts of theft in dwelling.
If found guilty of the said offence, the 47-year-old could be jailed for up to seven years, fined, or both. — AsiaOne
