SINGAPORE — Three Chinese nationals came to Singapore to commit theft, and one of them was in an Orchard Road pawnshop on July 16, 2023, when he slipped a 3.01-carat diamond ring worth nearly $132,500 into his pocket before leaving the premises.

After committing the offence, Lu Jingnan, 49 and He Yuanlin, 59, took a bus to Malaysia, while Luo Yi, 50, flew to an undisclosed location from Changi Airport.

Lu and He were arrested at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 19, and the pair were taken back to Singapore the next day.

On Thursday (Nov 16), Lu was sentenced to two years and eight months' jail after he pleaded guilty to a theft charge.

Court documents did not disclose the outcome of the cases involving He and Luo.

Deputy Public Prosecutor James Chew said the trio had taken separate flights, arriving in Singapore on July 11, 2023.

Five days later, they went to a Valuemax outlet at Lucky Plaza shopping centre at around 6pm to commit the theft.

Lu entered the shop first, while Luo came in about a minute later. The third Chinese national stood outside and looked into the shop through a glass panel. Lu and Luo did not acknowledge each other.

Lu told a store executive that he wanted to look at some diamond rings and that he had a budget of more than $50,000.

She retrieved the 3.01-carat diamond ring and handed it to him. Lu told her he wanted to buy it. After that, they spent some time looking for a suitable ring casing.

The DPP said: "As (the woman) had difficulty finding a ring casing that was big enough to fit the ring, (Lu) enquired about another smaller diamond. (She then) proceeded to retrieve and prepare the smaller diamond for (him) to view."

Meanwhile, Luo spoke to a male employee about gold jewellery in a separate section of the shop.

Soon after, Lu looked towards Luo's direction and nodded his head.

The DPP said that when Luo saw the gesture, he positioned himself in a walking space between a glass tabletop display and some shelf displays of gold jewellery, blocking the male employee from stepping out to an entryway where he could see Lu.

While the woman attending to Lu was distracted with preparing the smaller diamond, Lu slipped the 3.01-carat diamond ring into his pocket.

He told the woman he wanted to buy the smaller diamond. She then went to a back office to check its price.

Le and Luo then got out of the pawnshop, while He also left the vicinity soon after.

The ring was found in He's possession after he and Lu were arrested in Kuala Lumpur.

DPP Chew had asked the court to sentence Lu to at least three years' jail, stressing that the offence involved a high degree of premeditation and sophistication.

He added: "The entire scheme was carefully planned and well-coordinated, with each party executing a specific role.

"Deterrence is the key sentencing consideration in the present case, and the sentence imposed must adequately deter foreign criminals from coming to Singapore and targeting Singaporean businesses."

For theft, an offender can be jailed for up to seven years and fined.

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