Man steals bag from woman, 76, right under police camera in Clementi, arrested within 2 hours

In the early morning of Oct. 22, 2022, a 76-year-old woman was strolling along the HDB blocks at Clementi Avenue 2 when her bag was suddenly snatched by a male suspect.

The terrified victim called the police soon after.

However, as she was "still in shock," the woman couldn't explain what had happened in much detail.

"It happened very fast to her," said Senior Investigation Officer (IO) of the Clementi Division Fang Wei Chen, 35, who was involved in the case. "She couldn't recall much of the description of this suspect."

"She just mentioned that it took place somewhere near a mosque, laundry shop, or a Singapore Pools Outlet," Watch Officer (WO) Tay Wee Kiong, 35, recalled.

As a WO, Tay's job was to seek more information on the incident, including calls from the public and footage from police cameras (PolCams).

The information will subsequently be provided to the Ground Response Force (GRF) to assist their decision-making before they arrive at the scene.

Tay checked the vicinity of the area and managed to narrow down the nearest Singapore Pools outlet to be at the NTUC FairPrice at 352 Clementi Avenue 2.

There, the police faced another challenge: how were they supposed to find the suspect if the victim couldn't recall much description about the suspect?

Previously, this would have the police sourcing for CCTV cameras around the vicinity of the area and search for any nearby witnesses.

Yet since the theft was committed within the PolCam's view, the police could identify the accused's identity.

They arrested him two hours after they received the '999' call.

The suspect had also attempted to hide evidence of his crime, but PolCam footage retrieved showed that he had hidden the bag in a rubbish bin.

The victim's stolen bag was safely recovered.

Fang said that though the case could have been solved without the aid of PolCam, more effort and time would be needed.

"PolCams provide us with the crucial lead to solve crime faster," Tay explained, giving examples of how the equipment can help police identify the suspect's attire and identity.

It can also help locate missing people, Tay added.

One such example is a case where the police were alerted to a person with special needs who went missing on Mar. 18, 2023.

Through examining footage from the PolCam in the vicinity of the missing person’s residential estate, the police were able to identify the person's attire.

They then traced his steps and were eventually alerted to a possible sighting of the missing person.

"The Police managed to locate the missing person, and he was safely reunited with his family within four hours of the report being lodged," said the Singapore Police Force (SPF).

PolCam has assisted SPF in solving more than 7,500 crime cases

Since the start of deployment, PolCam has assisted SPF in solving more than 7,500 crime cases.

"In many incidents, the PolCam footages, aided by sense-making tools, have enabled SPF to identify, locate, and apprehend the suspects within hours of the crime being reported," the police said.

The cameras have also been proven effective in deterring physical crimes such as unlicensed moneylending (UML)-related harassment cases, housebreaking, and thefts in HDB estates and multi-storey carparks.

"In general, PolCam has proven effective in supporting our police mission of preventing, deterring, and detecting crime," said Tay.

SPF stated PolCam data is securely stored, and only authorised people are allowed to access it for official purposes.

There are strict internal processes to govern the use of PolCam data, and every access to PolCam data is recorded, it added.

"Any officer found accessing the footage for unauthorised purposes will be severely dealt with under the law," said SPF.

PolCams are trained only in public areas.

Over 90,000 PolCams have been installed across the island in neighbourhoods and public areas since its launch in 2012.

At least 200,000 PolCams will be installed by 2030.

Top image via Amber Tay