SINGAPORE: A couple who went on a shoplifting spree with their daughters at malls in Tampines to steal make-up, toiletries and alcohol, among other things, were sentenced to jail on Monday (July 29).
The father, 57, was sentenced to three weeks’ jail after pleading guilty to one charge of theft.
The mother, 48, was jailed for five weeks after she admitted to two theft charges.
The elder daughter, who was 18 years old when the offences were committed in 2022, pleaded guilty to two theft charges.
Her sister, who was 16 then, pleaded guilty to three theft charges.
All four offenders cannot be named to protect the identity of the youngest daughter, who was below 18 when she committed the offences. Such individuals are covered under the Children and Young Persons Act.
The cases of both daughters, now aged 18 and 20, were adjourned to Sept 9 after the judge called for probation suitability reports.
The court heard that the elder daughter is the second child in the family, while the younger daughter is the fourth child in the family. It was not stated in court how many children the couple have.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Kiera Yu said that on Nov 26, 2022, the mother, who was unemployed, took her daughters to various shops in malls in Tampines to commit a slew of theft offences.
While they were in the Watsons outlet at Tampines 1, the mother took a few items and handed them to her younger daughter, who took them to the entrance of the store to test if they would be detected by security sensors.
On learning that no sensors were triggered, the teenager placed the items in her bag and returned to the store.
Her mother then handed her more items, including skincare products, to hide in her bag.
The younger daughter then took 24 more items, including make-up products, and placed them in her bag.
The elder daughter took other items, including pimple patches and sunscreen, and placed them in her own bag.
The trio left the shop with 39 items worth over S$890 without paying for them.
They committed the same ruse at the Guardian store at Century Square and stole 11 items worth over $300.
That same day, the father, a housekeeping executive, went with his younger daughter to the Cold Storage at Tampines 1 and placed three bottles of alcohol into a black bag.
He then handed the bag to his daughter to take out of the supermarket, with the intention of using her to commit the thefts, said the DPP.
Before she left the shop, the girl took razors and a skincare product and placed it inside her own bag.
In total, they stole products worth more than $200 from Cold Storage.
Their offences came to light after a Watsons employee made a police report.
DPP Yu said the couple committed the crimes because they knew their daughters would be unlikely to receive custodial sentences even if they were arrested as they were minors.
“Instead of exercising their parental duties and guiding their children to be lawful citizens, it is particularly aggravating that they had taken advantage of the young age of their daughters, and brought them to the mall for the purpose of committing thefts,” said the prosecutor.
Those convicted of theft in dwelling can be jailed for up to seven years and are liable to a fine. - The Straits Times/ANN
