Police probe into missing Labubu dolls after boys tilt claw machine in Yishun

SINGAPORE – Five Labubu dolls worth about $300 were reported stolen in Yishun after three boys were seen tilting a claw machine on the morning of Nov 18.

In response to The Straits Times’ queries, the police confirmed they were informed and are investigating the incident that took place outside a pet shop at Block 930 Yishun Central 1.

Mr Derrick He, who owns Little Pets Kingdom and the claw machine, said he noticed that the wires above the machine were dislodged from the beam above when he arrived at work at 9.30am.

Upon closer inspection, he noticed that five of the 11 Labubu dolls from “The Monsters Tasty Macarons Series” were missing from the machine.

CCTV camera footage seen by ST shows three boys playing with the claw machine at around 6.30am, with no luck at winning the dolls.

Two of them are later seen grabbing the claw machine from opposite sides and trying to tilt it.

In another attempt at around 7am, the two boys can be seen tilting the machine to one side, while the third boy lifts it slightly off the ground.

At one point, the trio appear to almost lay the machine sideways on the ground before standing it upright again. One boy can be seen sticking his hand into the opening that dispenses the dolls.

Mr He, 52, said he was shocked when he saw the footage. The machine had attracted double its usual crowd after he put 11 dolls into it about 10 days ago, he said.

Despite the incident, he will still leave the remaining dolls in the machine, he added.

Priced at $24.90 on the official Pop Mart website, dolls from the series are currently sold out online in Singapore, with resellers charging up to $65 for each doll.

The Labubu doll went viral globally when Lisa of South Korean girl band Blackpink posted photos of herself with Labubu in April.

The toy has since flown off shelves, with fans willing to pay double to snag it from resellers.

In October, a father and his two children were caught on camera stealing $100 worth of Labubu dolls at a claw machine store in Sim Lim Square, according to AsiaOne.

Earlier in November, a Plaza Singapura spokesman said a police report was filed against a Facebook page pretending to be that of the mall. The fake social media page had promoted the sale of a limited edition Labubu doll at a discount.

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