Teen robber hurls weapon, injures shop owner in Pasir Ris after getting startled by stranger

The owner of a steamed bun shop in Pasir Ris was left with a 5cm-long wound on her chest after a teenager tried to rob her store. 

Chen, the victim's husband, told the Shin Min Daily News that a teenager entered their shop located at the ground floor of Elias Mall at about 6pm on Thursday (Jan 11). There were no other customers around, he recounted. 

The 61-year-old said that the teenager spoke to him and his wife in English, but neither of them understood him. Assuming that he wanted to buy some steamed buns, Chen handed him a menu. 

The teen then shook his head and said "no, no", before pulling out a sharp weapon and pointing at the cash register. 

It is not known what weapon the teen used.

When the couple realised that the teen wanted to rob them, they raised their hands and told the latter to calm down. Chen added he was also prepared to hand over the cash to prevent the teen from hurting him and his wife. 

Just as he was getting the money out of the cash register, his wife noticed a passer-by walking past their shop and yelled at her husband not to hand over the money. 

"[The teen] saw the passer-by and I think he was startled. He threw the weapon at us and ran off," said Chen. 

The weapon struck Chen's wife directly on her chest, which left her bleeding. 

Although Chen wanted to pursue the teen on foot, he couldn't leave his injured wife alone in the shop. Chen called his family to inform them about the incident, while staff from a neighbouring shop called an ambulance for his wife. 

The woman was eventually taken to the hospital where she received stitches and a tetanus shot. 

Bakery only two months old 

When a Shin Min reporter went down to the bakery on Thursday evening, more than 10 police officers were present on site. They also found a shoe near the Chens' shop, which was allegedly left behind the teen while he was fleeing. 

He was also believed to have stolen his weapon from a hardware stall in the same mall. 

An employee of a nearby hardware shop, surnamed Luo, told Shin Min that CCTV footage from their store showed the teen entering the shop. 

"At that time we were all busy, he didn't approach the counter to make payment, so no one saw him steal," she said. 

According to Shin Min, a piece of plastic resembling the packaging of the weapon was also found near the bakery. 

Speaking to the Chinese daily in an interview on Friday, Chen's wife, He Meili (transliteration) recalled that blood was pouring out from her chest. Holding onto her wound to stop the bleeding, she tried visiting a nearby clinic to get her wound treated, but it was closed.

The couple's daughter, Chen Yuhao, also told Shin Min that her parents' shop had just opened two months ago, and she didn't expect this to happen. She added that she would be installing CCTVs inside the shop. 

In response to AsiaOne's queries, the police confirmed that they were alerted to a case of attempted robbery at a shop along Elias Road. 

A 56-year-old woman sustained minor injuries and was conveyed conscious to the hospital.

A 15-year-old male teenager was arrested in relation to the incident. Police investigations are ongoing.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force told AsiaOne that they conveyed one person to Changi General Hospital on Thursday evening. 

READ ALSO: 'I was fighting for my life': Man on being cornered, robbed in KL after turning into dark alley

claudiatan@asiaone.com