'We don't lock our doors': Residents of estates along Holland Road hit by burglary

SINGAPORE - For years, when she left her Mount Sinai home, she would not lock the front gate.

Ms Susan, a resident in her 60s, said the area was safe and house break-ins were not an issue.

Then came news last week that a couple of homes in the Holland Road area had been burgled, allegedly targeted by a syndicate.

Now, worried residents are locking up and testing burglar alarms to avoid being the next victim.

The Straits Times reported on Aug 2 that an international housebreaking syndicate allegedly targeted the Bukit Sedap Road area, off Holland Road.

ST understands two houses there were hit.

After one of the victims made a police report on July 27, a Chinese national believed to be a syndicate member was arrested.

On Aug 5, ST visited landed estates in the Holland Road area.

Some residents said they were alarmed by the recent incidents, and said the police had visited them last week, handing out a crime prevention advisory.

The advisory said the culprits were believed to have entered houses either through the front, side, rear or kitchen doors, or windows.

Ms Susan, who has lived in Mount Sinai for over 20 years and declined to give her full name, said: “This area had always been very safe for us. We didn’t lock our doors during the day. If there were people in the house, I would probably just lock the front door and go off. I didn’t bother to padlock the gate.

“Now we’re getting a bit frightened – I lock both because I don’t want (the burglars) to come when my children are home.”

She plans to upgrade her CCTV system, and install timer lights in her house to deter would-be burglars.

A contractor who has worked around the Bukit Sedap area for about a decade said the side gate of one of the burgled houses was usually unlocked.

The contractor, who declined to be named, said a padlock was installed on the gate last week, after the break-ins.

Mr Martin, 42, a regional manager in the shipping industry who has been living in the Greenleaf estate for over three years, said he always locks his front gate, but not necessarily his front door.

The expatriate from Denmark said he would not take extra precautions, even after the recent break-ins. He said: “I’m not at all worried. There’s no violence, it’s very safe here.”

Ms Ambe, 45, a domestic helper at a house in Bukit Sedap Road, said her employers were overseas and she had told them about the break-ins. She usually ensures all the doors and windows are locked.

She added: “I am a little bit shocked because I thought Singapore was a very safe country.”

Over at Grove Drive, a teacher, 29, who declined to be named and who works at a pre-school there, said her principal told them to keep all their valuables and laptops at home.

Mr Teo, a resident at Moonbeam estate for over two decades, said his neighbours have become more vigilant. Some tested their burglar alarms over the weekend.

“In all the years we’ve lived here, we’ve never had house break-ins. It makes us worried,” said Mr Teo, adding that he hopes the police can conduct more regular patrols.

In the advisory issued to residents, the police said while they have stepped up patrols in the affected area, home owners should lock all their doors, and install a burglar alarm and CCTV cameras.

On Aug 2, police took the suspect, Wu Jinxing, 27, back to the scene to retrace his steps. Wu had allegedly stashed the loot near the forested area nearby and in a hotel room near Geylang Road.

On Aug 5, he was back in court and is now accused of dishonestly retaining stolen property worth about $528,000.

They include an MB&F watch valued at $165,000, a Hermes Birkin handbag worth $75,000, and a Hublot watch worth $110,000.

A police prosecutor said more time was needed to trace Wu’s accomplices. Wu’s next court date is on Aug 12.

• Additional reporting by Samuel Devaraj

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.