On 28 May 2025, a 51-year-old Chinese national, Zhang Kun, was convicted and sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment for theft onboard an aircraft.
On 17 March 2025 at about 12.16am, the Police were alerted to a case of theft onboard an aircraft enroute to Singapore. The victim reported that approximately SGD$230 (SGD$200 and RM100) in cash and a credit card were stolen from his wallet, which had been placed inside his haversack during the flight. Through follow-up investigations and with the assistance of a vigilant passenger, Mr K.Visvanathan, who witnessed the theft and provided crucial information, officers from the Airport Police Division established the identity of the man and arrested him at Changi Airport Terminal 1 after the flight's arrival.
The man was convicted of theft on board an aircraft under Section 379 of the Penal Code 1871 read with Section 3(1) of the Tokyo Convention Act 1971. The offence carries an imprisonment term which may extend to three years, or a fine, or both.
Commander of Airport Police Division (APD), Assistant Commissioner of Police M. Malathi said, "Theft committed on board an aircraft undermines passengers’ trust and their safety during travel. APD will spare no effort to apprehend and charge such offenders. I would like to commend Mr Visvanathan for his public-spiritedness. His timely information was instrumental in enabling our officers to take swift action to identify and arrest the accused. Such vigilance goes a long way in the swift detection and substantiation of such crimes, which are often challenging to uncover due to their transient nature. He was awarded the Public Spiritedness Award on 25 March 2025. We hope that his action will serve to inspire others to keep air travel safe for all travellers.”
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
28 May 2025 @ 12:50 PM