34-year-old Chen Yixian Joshua pleaded guilty to 2 charges of theft and was sentenced to 3 weeks imprisonment on 23 February.
He had stolen 8 milk powder tins from an NTUC FairPrice outlet in Punggol and some Toys from a Toys “R” Us outlet back in June 2022, and confessed to wanting to resell them to make a profit when he was caught red-handed by a security guard, according to Channel NewsAsia.
The incident happened on 22 June 2022, when Chen went to the NTUC FairPrice outlet at Waterway Point to steal 8 tins of the 900 grams Enfagrow Pro A+ Stage 3 milk powder, with the total worth of the loot being $422.40.
He hid behind a pillar to hide the milk tins into a bag that he brought along with him and exited the supermarket but was caught in the act by a security guard.
Chen was then detained and brought to the security office where they uncovered the stolen products, as well as toys with the Toys “R” Us labels on them, worth about $213.94.
He was subsequently arrested by the police and confessed to wanting to resell the goods for a profit.
The police’s further investigations revealed that Chen had gone to the toy store earlier that night to steal toys, which he said were for his children.
Results in FairPrice locking up baby milk powder
Twitter user Shawn Lim, shared on his Twitter page about how FairPrice has started locking up baby milk powder because of thefts.
Lim tweeted: “FairPrice has started locking up baby milk powder because apparently they are being stolen. Breaks my heart that there people out there struggling to feed their babies”
He accompanied his tweet with a photo of the rows of baby milk powders being locked behind a transparent glass.
A spokesperson for FairPrice said that this is part of a new initiative at their Bukit Batok MRT outlet, in a bid to prevent shoplifting.
The spokesperson added that the baby milk powders and other similar products are among the items that are typically shoplifted.
MP Murali Pillai responds to milk powder being locked
It was previously reported that at least two NTUC FairPrice outlets have started locking up their baby milk powders behind barriers as part of efforts to prevent shoplifting.
Bukit Batok SMC MP Murali Pillai, made a clarification on Facebook Live, after being “concerned” that the situation was being misread by the public.
Murali was seen in the Facebook live video with an employee of the supermarket, and clarified that the anti-theft measures were meant to deter thieves who resell the stolen products.
He said that some netizens were under the impression that the measures had targetted those who are not able to afford baby milk powders, and confirmed that this was not the case.
He reiterated his point that FairPrice is concerned about people who steal with the view of making a profit, meaning selling and making a profit.