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Scoot air steward charged for embezzling almost S$40,000 from in-flight food & drinks sales over nearly 2 years
He will be sentenced on Feb. 3.
January 03, 2026, 11:03 AM
An air steward with budget airline Scoot was found guilty of embezzling close to S$40,000 in cash from the sale of in-flight food and beverages over a span of nearly two years.
Over 366 occasions from July 2023 to March 2025, Luqman Hakim Shahfawi, 31, pocketed the cash he collected from customers on his flight instead of depositing the money as required, The Straits Times reported.
He eventually confessed to his crimes and was reported to the police.
Luqman pleaded guilty to one count of criminal breach of trust relating to S$22,000, while a second charge pertaining to the remaining S$18,000 will be considered during his sentencing.
He no longer works with Scoot, the airline told ST.
How it started
Luqman's repeated offences reportedly began after an incident in 2023 where he lost two bags of cash from the sale of food and drinks, also known as "Brinks bags".
He did not report the matter to his supervisors, but instead decided to pocket all subsequent Brinks bags because he was worried that his supervisors would find out about the loss of the first two.
As a complex leader (a senior crew member in charge of more junior staff), Luqman was responsible for doing a tally of items sold and sales returns at the end of each flight and recording them in a Scoot software.
He was also required to deposit the Brinks bags into a safe within 48 hours of the flight.
In court, the deputy public prosecutor said that he continued with his actions when his supervisors failed to confront him for not depositing the money from each subsequent Brink bag, which he reportedly used to repay debts to unlicensed moneylenders.
From July 2023 to March 2024, he embezzled almost S$18,000 on 156 occasions.
Another S$22,000 was pocketed on 210 occasions from April 2024 to March 2025.
Luqman finally confessed to his crimes on Mar. 20, 2025, leading to his arrest.
His sentencing will take place on Feb. 3.
Top image via N8aviation/Facebook
