by Elena Chong
A SOUTH Korean national who came here in 2006 and broke into a
shipping company returned last year with a false passport and
committed a series of housebreaking and theft.
Choi Hee Soo, 36, pleaded guilty on Monday to six counts of
housebreaking and theft and three charges under the Immigration
Act. The unemployed man was sentenced to a total of 55.5 months and
plus three strokes of the cane.
A district court heard that he broke into 37 premises and got
away with almost $87,000 worth of property.
He first broke into a shipping company in Chinatown Point and
stole cash and a Rolex watch totalling $12,830 in 2006. He then
left the country.
On Oct 20 last year, he returned via Tuas checkpoint using a
false passport. He lied that he had never used a passport under a
different name to enter Singapore and produced the travel document
which did not belong to him. He then went on a housebreaking and
theft spree, burgling offices in Orchard Road, Science Park Drive,
Alexandra Terrace and Ubi.
The remaining 44 charges were considered during his
sentencing.
