Mindef investigates Tiong Bahru hawker biryani scam, says no evidence it was SAF personnel who placed order

On Sep. 9, it was reported that a hawker stall in Tiong Bahru Market, Muhammad Shazain Faiha Muslim Food Paradise, had fallen victim to a fake order of 150 packets of chicken and mutton biryani.

According to the stall's owner, 38-year-old Syed, the order was placed by a man who claimed to be a "Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) representative."

However, the man did not show up at the scheduled collection time and was uncontactable.

The Ministry of Defence of Singapore (Mindef) took to Facebook to clarify the incident late last night on Sep. 10.

Man who placed the order was not from SAF

In the post, Mindef revealed that investigations into the incident had been done and confirmed that the person who placed the order was not an SAF personnel.

"Based on the information provided by the complainants, we have found no evidence that these individuals are affiliated with the SAF," the post wrote.

Mindef added that they are taking the case seriously and urged members of the public to be vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the police.

Managed to clear the orders with the help of residents

After realising that they had been scammed, Syed took to Facebook to share about the scam and appealed to the public for help in purchasing the large batch of biryani.

Tiong Bahru Member of Parliament (MP) Foo Cexiang also shared the post on his Facebook page and encouraged residents to support the stall.

With the help of residents and grassroots leaders, all 150 packets were sold out in one and a half hours.

Grassroots leaders had bought 30 packets of the biryani to distribute to residents living in the rental flats, while some members of the public had also called the stall to purchase the biryani, and then requested that the food be distributed to those in need as a pay-it-forward gesture.

In Syed's words, they managed to "turn this setback into a blessing."

Top photos via Muhammad Shazain Faiha Muslim Food Paradise/Facebook, Djoko Purwanto/Google Maps, Mindef/Facebook