Woman who stole from airport shops in Feb had also committed $400 theft on day of arrest in April

A woman who stole from two shops at Changi Airport in February had also committed a similar crime on the day she was nabbed two months later.

The police said they were alerted on Feb 21 to a case of theft after a belt valued at over $800 and cosmetic products worth more than $170 were discovered missing from two retail outlets in the airport's transit area.

Through ground enquiries and with the aid of images from closed-circuit television (CCTV), officers from the Airport Police Division established the woman's identity.

However, the woman had left Singapore shortly after she purportedly committed the crime.

She was arrested by the police when she returned to the country in April 2024.

"Preliminary investigations revealed that she had allegedly stolen cosmetic products amounting to more than $400 on the same day of the arrest," police said.

The woman will be charged in court on April 16 with theft in dwelling, which carries a jail term of up to seven years and a fine.

The police said they take a serious view of shop theft cases and offenders will be dealt with firmly in accordance with the law.

They added: "The police will continue to work closely with stakeholders and the community to prevent and deter shop theft cases."