The police have arrested a 59-year-old man who was wanted in a case of Armed Robbery which occurred outside an OCBC branch near Blk 65 Yuan Kuang Road in 1996.
Foo Siang Thian, a Singaporean, faces one count of armed robbery with common intention, an offence that carries a jail term of between two and 10 years, with up to 12 strokes of the cane.
On 5 July 1996 at about 11 am, the then 43-year-old victim was walking to his car after withdrawing a sum of money from the bank when two unknown men armed with knives approached and robbed him of monies amounting to about S$44,000/-. The two men then fled on a stolen motorcycle.
Following an intensive operation, two men Lee Ai Eng, aged 59 and How Meng Yan, aged 65 were swiftly arrested and duly charged in Court while Foo Siang Thian remained at large.
How was sentenced to three years’ jail, with two strokes of the cane, while Lee was sentenced to three years’ and two months’ jail, with six strokes of the cane. Lee also faced a further six-month driving disqualification period for one count of vehicle theft.
On 5 March 2018, with the assistance of the Royal Malaysia Police (RMP), Foo Siang Thian was arrested in Malaysia.
“The arrest and extradition of the suspect after 22 years on the run was made possible through the strong support of the RMP.
I would like to thank the RMP for their efforts to locate and arrest the suspect. Through good partnership with foreign law enforcement agencies, the police will persevere and ensure that criminals are brought back to face justice regardless how long it takes.” Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Police Julian Chee, Deputy Commander of Jurong Police Division, said,
He was subsequently extradited back to Singapore on 6 March 2018.
He was charged in Court on today (8 March 2018) with the offence of Armed Robbery with Common Intention under Section 392 read with Sections 397 and 34 of the Penal Code, Chapter 224, which carries an imprisonment term of up to 14 years and up to 12 strokes of cane.
Foo appeared in court unrepresented in a black T-shirt.
He will return to court on March 15. No bail was offered, and he remains in remand at the Jurong Police Division.
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