2 men who allegedly stole S$134,000 from Serangoon Road money changer arrested in KL, returned to Singapore
The two men were arrested at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Jul 26, 2023, then handed over to Singapore Police Force a day later. (Photos: SPF)
SINGAPORE: Two men were arrested in Kuala Lumpur and returned to the Singapore police after they allegedly stole about S$134,000 (US$100,800) from a money changer along Serangoon Road.
The alleged offence took place on Dec 2 last year, said the Singapore Police Force in a news release on Thursday (Jul 27).Â
The two men, aged 36 and 70, were said to have approached the money changer on the pretext of exchanging Singapore dollars to euros and US dollars.
When presented with US$25,000 and €70,000, one of the men placed the money into a bag with a number lock attached. But he left the bag at the money changer and said he was going to withdraw Singapore dollars for the currency exchange.
Upon returning, the men requested for the money changer to verify the amounts of US$25,000 and €70,000.
During the process, they were believed to have swapped the genuine notes with counterfeit notes. The men then left with the bag containing the genuine notes, stating that they would return to complete the transaction.
When the two men did not return after a few hours, the money changer opened the black bag and discovered that only one €200 note, one €500 note, and one US$100 note were genuine. The other notes were purportedly counterfeit notes.
Through ground enquiries, police camera images and CCTV footage, the police established the identities of the two men on the day of the reported theft. However, they had left Singapore on the same day.
With the Royal Malaysian Police’s assistance, the two men were arrested at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Wednesday, and handed over to the Singapore Police Force a day later.
Both men will be charged in court on Friday with abetment to commit theft in dwelling. The offence carries a jail term of up to seven years and a fine.
"The police would like to alert all money exchangers to be vigilant against similar modus operandi and guard such theft involving sleight of hand," said the police in the news release.
