Our circuit breaker may be ending very soon, but some people just couldn’t wait. While many leave their homes for social gatherings, some have left their homes for other non-essential outings, and here are some of the craziest:
Stealing underwear
The temptation of stealing women’s underwear is too much for one 26-year old man who was stealing female undergarments in Pasir Ris on May 10. He was arrested 10 days later, when police found more than 25 items of women’s undergarments in his possession. This wasn’t his first offense – he’s revealed to be involved in other similar cases in the vicinity.
Debt collecting
A young man allegedly left his house in Bedok to drive to harass someone in Holland Close – he wrote “O$P$” along with the name and number of the victim on the wall of the lift landing and locked the gate of the victim’s flat with a bicycle lock in an apparent loan shark harassment. This wasn’t his first time – apparently he carried out three cases of loan shark harassments on Apr 6 and Apr 9.
Rioting over a girl
Apparently a relationship dispute between a woman and 2 rival groups of guys sparked a riot at a People’s Park Centre apartment block which happened in the early morning of May 10. Armed with deadly weapons, the 2 groups had a scuffle along a corridor and the event was captured on CCTV – resulting in multiple teens being arrested. One guy was injured and sent to hospital.
Kayaking to Ubin
Three men were caught illegally camping and fishing on Pulau Ubin’s Chek Jawa Wetlands Park on April 13. They met at Pasir Ris Carpark and kayaked to Chek Jawa. Apparently they claimed they weren’t aware that what they were doing was illegal because they didn’t see any signboards or notifications on NParks’ website. This may not be the craziest reason to leave home – we all probably feel like spending time outside our homes to breathe some fresh, natural air.
Feeding wild boars
Of all the wild animals to feed, nine people were fined for leaving their houses to feed wild boars along Lorong Halus – they were caught by NParks. Feeding wildlife is illegal (fines go up to $10,000) as these wild animals are dangerous, and feeding them could lead them to display aggressive behavior towards people. No word yet on cat feeders, though.
Prostitution
This comes as no big surprise, especially when people are cooped up at home for prolonged periods of time. When police conducted coordinated raids at flats, condos, and hotels between May 4 and 6, multiple arrests were made. A total of 19 men, aged between 19 and 85 (yep, still going strong) were arrested. According to the police, vice activities are increasingly being facilitated by online platforms that solicit clients.
Smashing neighbours’ windows
A 52-year old man went out of his home during circuit breaker to smash the windows of 2 of his neighbours – apparently he did it because he was tired of the cigarette smoke coming out of their flats. We can all understand his frustrations – who likes breathing in smoke when we’re supposed to be at home all day? But to smash someone’s window is a bit too much…
Illegal Gambling
The circuit breaker isn’t stopping hardcore gamblers from doing what they usually do: illegal gambling. From mahjong to race betting, there have been multiple busts recently that ended in arrests at Woodlands, Everton Park, Geylang Bahru, Temple Street and Jalan Besar.
While most people break circuit breaker for common reasons like hanging out with friends or partying along Roberston Quay, some are definitely going stir crazy from being cooped up at home too long.
