A Vietnamese woman stole jewellery from infants at the Singapore Zoo in Mandai when their parents were not paying attention. Nguyen Thi Tot Mot, 43, was jailed for 14 months for the theft of a $1,000 gold necklace and the attempted theft of a $300 gold chain the next day.

On Dec 23, Mot ripped the necklace off a two-year-old who was standing alone at the otter enclosure at about 3pm. But her mother, who was nearby, noticed that the necklace was missing. She confronted Mot who then dropped the jewellery and fled.

Unperturbed, Mot who was here on a social visit pass, went back to the zoo the next day. At about 1pm, she approached a 16-month-old boy at an ice-cream kiosk.

She tried to steal the gold necklace from the infant's neck but the mother grew suspicious and took a picture of Mot. Realising she had been found out, Mot ran off without the necklace. She was arrested when she returned to the zoo on Dec 30.