In a daring heist that shook the bustling streets of Singapore, Akhalaia Irakli, a 46-year-old Georgian man, masterminded a plan to commit theft and succeeded in stealing a whopping US$74,300 (equivalent to $101,861 SGD) from a money changer in Singapore, according to The Straits Times.
This audacious act led to Irakli’s eventual sentencing on Wednesday to two years and two months in prison, alongside his accomplice, Malishava Joni, aged 55, who received a two-year sentence.
The Target: Peninsula Shopping Centre
Irakli carefully selected Singapore as the backdrop for his audacious theft, largely due to the perception that the city-state was flush with wealth. He chose Peninsula Shopping Centre, nestled in Coleman Street, as his target.
Irakli’s partner-in-crime, Joni, joined him in Singapore. The duo arrived with a mixture of counterfeit and genuine US dollar notes, with fake euro notes also in their possession.
On April 21, Irakli visited the money changer at Peninsula Shopping Centre and expressed his intention to purchase US$75,000 worth of currency later that day. He returned to the establishment later, accompanied by Joni, around 4:30 PM.
The money changer handed Irakli 750 pieces of US$100 notes, bundled into eight different packages. Irakli then extracted US$700 from the bundles and paid for them using an undisclosed currency.
The remaining US$74,300 was concealed in three plastic bags, which Irakli placed into a black leather briefcase. Unbeknownst to the money changer, this briefcase already contained three additional plastic bags, each filled with a bundle of notes.
The outermost and innermost notes in each bundle were genuine US$100 bills, while the rest were a mixture of counterfeit US dollar and euro notes, along with legitimate US$1 notes. The cunning plan was to make the bundles appear entirely genuine, thereby tricking the victim.
Irakli attempted to pass the briefcase to the money changer through a glass panel for “safekeeping.” However, he encountered a hurdle—the panel’s opening was too small for the exchange.
In a twist worthy of a Hollywood movie, Irakli and Joni claimed they needed to transfer the genuine US dollar notes to a smaller black clutch bag. Instead, they transferred the three plastic bags containing the counterfeit notes into the clutch bag.
The two Georgians then handed the clutch bag, supposedly containing the genuine notes, to the victim, stating that they would return to retrieve and pay for the real US dollar notes. In a matter of moments, they disappeared into thin air, leaving the money changer to grapple with the shocking truth.
The victim realized he had been duped when he cut open the locked clutch bag, only to discover counterfeit money. He promptly alerted the authorities, setting off a manhunt for the elusive culprits.
Despite their daring heist, Irakli and Joni’s escape plan was foiled. They managed to board a plane at Changi Airport, hoping to flee Singapore with their ill-gotten gains. However, justice caught up with them just before takeoff, as they were apprehended.