Shop theft problem persists in first half of 2024; more outrage of modesty cases at shopping centres

SINGAPORE - The most common physical crime here in the first six months of 2024 is shop theft, with more than half of these cases involving stolen items worth less than $50.

In their mid-year crime brief for 2024, released on Aug 23, the police said the total number of reported physical crime cases increased by 4.1 per cent to 10,106 cases in the first half of 2024.

This is up from 9,704 cases in

the same period in 2023

.

Shop theft accounted for 20.1 per cent, or 2,027, of all physical crime cases in the first half of 2024.

This is the third consecutive year that there is an increase in shop theft in the first six months of the year.

The police said that among youth arrested, one of the most common crimes was shop theft, with most cases happening at supermarkets and health and wellness shops.

Items stolen were typically worth less than $50 each and included personal care products, food and beverage items and cosmetics.

Other crimes of concern were outrage of modesty, voyeurism and theft in dwelling.

The number of outrage of modesty – or molestation – cases increased slightly, to 708 in the first half of 2024 compared with 697 cases during the same period in 2023. The police said 434 of the cases in 2024 involved culprits known to victims.

There were 173 such cases reported at residential premises, an increase from 163 cases in the first six months of 2023.

Shopping centres also saw more outrage of modesty cases, with 77 incidents reported, compared with 56 during the same period in 2023. But there was a drop of such cases on the public transport network, with 71 cases reported, from 87 in 2023.

Outrage of modesty cases at nightspots also fell from 70 cases to 52. The police encouraged patrons and public entertainment outlets to keep the premises safe.

Voyeurism cases increased from 229 cases to 257 cases, with the top three locations also being residential premises (78 cases), shopping complexes (44 cases) and the public transport network (27 cases).

A worrying trend was noticed at sports and swimming complexes, with 11 voyeurism cases in the first half of 2024, compared with one case during the same period in 2023.

The police said more than 85 per cent of such cases at residential premises were committed by those known to victims, such as boyfriends/former boyfriends, fellow tenants or household members.

The number of theft in dwelling cases also increased to 431, from 424 cases in the first half of 2023.

They were usually committed by people known to the victims, such as tenants, roommates, family members, domestic workers, service providers and friends.

In response to media queries, the police said youth accounted for 13.6 per cent of people arrested in the first half of 2024, with their top offences being shop theft and offences related to cheating.

Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police Gregory Tan, director of the operations department, said the crime situation in Singapore remains under control.

But he reminded the public to not be complacent.

Said SAC Tan: “Taking simple yet effective preventive measures, such as securing personal belongings in shared spaces and being observant of any suspicious activities, can significantly contribute to the prevention of these crimes.

“It is only through a whole of society effort that physical crime can continue to remain low, and Singapore can continue to be one of the safest places in the world.”