16-12-2024 (SINGAPORE) A Chinese food delivery worker has been sentenced to seven months in prison for his role in retrieving stolen luxury goods worth nearly half a million Singapore dollars.
The defendant, Wu Jinxing, 28, accepted a lucrative offer of 30,000 yuan (S$5,600) to travel to Singapore and collect stolen items, including a prized Hermès Birkin handbag valued at approximately S$45,000. The sum offered was roughly 150 times his daily earnings as a delivery worker in China.
The court heard that Wu arrived in Singapore on 27 July following instructions from Wu Jianxin, 30, a long-time acquaintance who, along with accomplice Huang Ziqian, 35, had previously orchestrated a series of high-end burglaries across the island. Both alleged burglars remain at large.
According to court documents, the burglars’ spree yielded an impressive haul, including luxury timepieces worth up to S$165,000 each, multiple Hermès handbags, jewellery, and cash in various currencies. The perpetrators strategically concealed their spoils along Singapore’s Rail Corridor and behind properties near Holland Road.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Janessa Phua detailed how Wu Jinxing, under video call guidance from Wu Jianxin, located the orange Birkin bag hidden beneath pipes and foliage near Buona Vista MRT station. Following the retrieval, Wu checked into a Geylang hotel, where he displayed the bag’s contents whilst being observed remotely by his co-conspirator.
The scheme unravelled when police, acting on intelligence, recovered additional stolen items from Bukit Sedap Road. Officers subsequently apprehended Wu Jinxing at 9:40 pm as he attempted to collect more valuables from the location.
During sentencing, DPP Phua emphasised the serious nature of Wu’s involvement in a sophisticated criminal syndicate, noting the case’s significant transnational element. Despite facing potential penalties of up to 10 years’ imprisonment and a S$500,000 fine for handling proceeds of criminal conduct, Wu received a seven-month sentence after pleading guilty.
