Man broke into bakery to steal cash and bread

SINGAPORE — A construction worker who faced financial difficulties broke into a bakery where he formerly worked at to steal cash and three pieces of bread.

Dinh Van Hai, a Vietnamese, knew that the bakery would leave its backdoor unlocked for around two hours while no one was in.

He entered the bakery in the wee hours of 12 January, wearing plastic bags over his hands to avoid leaving fingerprints.

The 33-year-old was jailed for three months on Tuesday (22 March) after he pleaded guilty to one count of housebreaking in order to commit an offence.

Dinh first came to Singapore on 25 November 2020 from his home country. He worked at Thousand Deli Bakery, located in Ang Mo Kio MRT Station, for eight months before becoming a construction worker.

During his employment with the bakery, he learned that the staff would leave the backdoor unlocked after closing the premises at midnight. The bakers would report for work around two hours later.

On 12 January, Dinh felt stressed due to his finances. He thought of stealing money from Thousand Deli Bakery after the workers left at midnight.

At night, he went to Ang Mo Kio MRT Station where he sat for a while. He then decided to put his plan into action. At about 1am, he went to a rubbish bin and found some plastic bags to cover his hands. He did not want to leave fingerprints while committing the crime.

Dinh then entered the bakery via its backdoor and stole three pieces of bread of unknown value, and cash of $400 from the register, which he knew how to operate from his time at the bakery.

As he left the bakery, Dinh removed his jacket to avoid being identified by CCTV cameras in the vicinity. He threw away the plastic bags he had used to cover his hands.

He walked a distance away and took a Grab car to his dormitory at 23 Defu South Street 1. An employee called the police later in the morning to say that someone had stolen $400, but that there had been no sign of entry.

Dinh was arrested that day and $182.20 recovered from him. He did not restitute the remaining sum.

Story continues

The prosecution sought three to four months’ jail, citing how Dinh had demonstrated a high level of planning, including wearing plastic bags and removing his jacket to avoid detection.

“Out of the three pieces of bread and $400 cash stolen, only $182.20 was recovered. In fact, the recovery could not be taken to the accused’s credit since it was recovered in the course of his arrest,” said the prosecution.

For house-breaking to commit any offence punishable with jail, Dinh could have been jailed up to 10 years and fined.

Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore’s Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore