In a shocking turn of events, Kang Eng Boo, a 60-year-old pawnshop runner, found himself at the center of a criminal breach of trust case involving luxury watches and jewelry worth over $70,000.
He was sentenced to 10 months and 2 weeks imprisonment on 6 October after pleading guilty to one count of criminal breach of trust and another charge of lying to the police, according to The Straits Times.
The Pawnshop Runner’s Responsibility
Kang Eng Boo had been a employee at a pawnshop located on Temple Street for over a decade. His primary role was to sell second-hand watches and jewelry that were consigned to the shop.
As part of his job, Kang was entrusted with valuable items that were to be sold to interested buyers. However, the pawnshop had strict rules: any proceeds from the sale of these consigned items were to be promptly handed over to the pawnshop. If the items remained unsold, they were to be returned to the shop.
The Luxury Loot
Between June and August 2020, Kang was handed a collection of high-end items, including four Rolex watches, an Omega watch, a Franck Muller watch, and a diamond bracelet, with a total estimated value of $70,058.
These items were placed in his care for the purpose of resale to potential buyers interested in second-hand luxury items.
The Deceptive Act
The plot thickened when Kang returned to the pawnshop on August 11, 2020, and informed the administrative assistant, known as ‘S’, that he had successfully sold three out of the seven consigned items.
However, he claimed that someone had stolen the bag containing both the proceeds from the sales and the four unsold items. When questioned further about the buyers, Kang hesitated to provide any information.
Three days later, on August 14, Kang admitted to ‘S’ that he had filed a false police report about a snatch theft that supposedly occurred on August 9.
In his fabricated account, he explained that the bag containing the items and the cash had been stolen. Kang also promised to reimburse half of the total value of the items to ‘S’s boss.
However, when he failed to fulfill this promise, a police report was filed against him.
The Unraveling Truth
As the police investigation unfolded, Kang initially continued to insist that he was a victim of snatch theft. But soon enough, his story began to unravel.
He changed his account and claimed that he had simply misplaced the bag at a unit in Lorong 14 Geylang on August 8.
However, investigative evidence contradicted his statements, revealing that he had never been in that area on that particular date.
The shocking revelation that Kang had kept the luxury watches and jewelry for himself rather than returning them to the pawnshop was a critical turning point in the case. Notably, Kang has not made any attempt to make restitution for his actions.