10 phones stolen from Bukit Panjang phone shop in night-time theft, glass window broken

10 phones were stolen from a phone shop at Greenridge Shopping Centre at Jelapang Road on Saturday, May 20. PHOTO: FACEBOOK/MIKEY TAN

SINGAPORE - A total of 10 phones were stolen from a phone shop in the wee hours of Friday (May 19) morning, with the culprit breaking the shop glass window at about 4am to get the devices.

The store, Mobile 8 at Greenridge Shopping Centre at Jelapang Road, suffered losses of about $12,000, citizen journalism site Stomp first reported on Saturday (May 20).

Mr Mikey Tan, the 30-year-old area manager for the phone shop outlets in Bukit Panjang, told The Straits Times on Saturday that staff first thought only eight phones were stolen, but found out after further stock-taking that the total was 10.

The phones stolen are brand new, and include eight iPhones, one Huawei phone and one Xiaomi phone.

Asked if they suspect who they culprit is, Mr Tan said: "We have no clue, but the culprit seems to be someone who knows our operations, as he knew that the boxes on display were not empty."

In pictures posted on Facebook by Mr Tan, the glass of the shop window is shown smashed in.

He implied that the culprit was reckless and not afraid of being caught.

"The mall has security. To break my glass you need a very good hammer and you need to hammer at least a few times," he said.

The glass has been replaced at a cost of about $800.

"We have been operating in this area for about 10 years," said Mr Tan. "This is the first time encountering such a thing."

A total of three staff members work at the store, and staff that day left at about 10pm.

Staff at the store made a police report over the break-in.

The police told ST that they were alerted to a case of housebreaking by night and theft at 524A Jelapang Road at 5.30am on Friday, and that police investigations are ongoing.

Mr Tan said the store would be stepping up security after the incident.

He said he hoped to recover the phones, but was not sure as to what the chances of that are.

"We can only hope for the best and prepare for the worse," he said.

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