By Fann
Sim | SingaporeScene
The wife of a thief stood up during her husband's court hearing and
volunteered to make the $31,000 restitution for the items her
husband stole.
Tan Cheow Lai, 57,
pleaded guilty to two counts of stealing 940 pieces of stainless
steel staircase nosings, worth a total of $14,100, from his
employer in November 2010, reported The Straits
Times.
He then sold the
components to scrap metal shops.
In court on
Thursday, Tan pleaded for leniency, saying he had to support two
children and his wife only earned $1,00 a month. He said he
realised he had done wrong and resorted to stealing because he
needed to pay off his credit card bills.
The first-time
offender asked the court to allow him to pay his fine and
restitution in instalments. He said the family had downgraded to a
smaller flat and money was still tight when Senior District
Judge See Kee Oon asked if full restitution could be paid before
sentencing.
At this point, his
wife who was seated in the public gallery, stood up and said they
could pay the restitution in full, reported the paper.
The court will
sentence Tan on 4 October to allow the pair time to raise money for
the restitution and hand it over to the investigating officer.
Four other charges
will be considered during his sentencing.
Tan
was responsible for four other thefts at the worksite. In
2010, he stole 15 bicycle racks worth $900, drainage inspection
chamber covers worth $1,978 and 470 staircase nosings between
October and December.
Tan's crime was
discovered when the staircase nosings were found missing several
months after he stole them. Police investigations led them to Tan,
who was arrested in March 2011.
On each theft
charge, he could be jailed up to three years and/or fined up to
$10,000.