'I already said sorry what': Man's reply after he was caught stealing bicycle at Paya Lebar

Apologising after making a mistake is a trait most people seek to possess.

However, having said trait had little value for a man who stole a bicycle along the entrance of Paya Lebar Quarter mall at about 10.30am on Sunday (May 22).

The bicycle thief, unfortunately, ended up being caught by the bicycle owner and a lacklustre apology followed.

But as the colloquial saying goes, 'sorry no cure'.

A three-minute clip of the altercation between the two men was posted on Sgfollowsall Instagram page later that same Sunday. The post has garnered 32,000 views and 72 comments at the time of writing.

[embed]https://www.instagram.com/tv/Cd24G1ihs8e/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link[/embed]

The bicycle owner, a food delivery rider, said that he left his bicycle unlocked as he entered the mall to collect his food order.

Some 10 minutes later, after collecting his order, he noticed that his bicycle was missing.

He delivered the order by foot before returning to Paya Lebar Quarter mall in search of his bicycle.

"I saw my bike parked in front of the Mos Burger at Paya Lebar Square. There was a phone attached to [the] phone holder, so I waited for him to come out before confronting him," he wrote on the Instagram page.

After asking the man if he was trying to steal the bicycle, the delivery rider received a rather bizarre response. 

"Not trying to steal. [It's because] I want to go home. I want to take your bike go home cause I busy already. I tired," the thief replied in the video.

That set off a war of words between the two men.

It did not take long before the delivery rider suggested they make a police report. Then came an even stranger retort.

"I already said sorry what," the other man said, basically admitting his attempt to steal the bike.

Though this wasn't captured on video, the post caption added that the accused ended up inviting the delivery rider to a fight.

Despite being turned down, the accused got aggressive and allegedly threw punches at the food delivery rider when the latter was calling the police, according to the post.

Netizens were both amused at the audacity of the accused to be upset and also triggered by his lack of remorse.

The police told AsiaOne that it was alerted to a case of dishonest misappropriation of property at 1 Paya Lebar Link on May 22 at 11.01am.

Investigations are ongoing.

Under section 403 of the Penal Code, whoever dishonestly misappropriates or converts to his own use movable property, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with a fine, or both.

An advisory on Singapore Police Force's website said that bicycles and personal mobility devices are common targets by thieves.

Among some measures you can take to avoid having your bicycle stolen is to use a good quality lock and to secure your bicycle to a permanent structure such as a bicycle rack.

ALSO READ: Singaporean motorcyclist finds $1,000 brake calipers stolen during JB shopping trip

amierul@asiaone.com