A man has been sentenced to 20 months' imprisonment for attempting to steal a fellow passenger's luggage, which contained luxury items worth tens of thousands of pounds, during a Singapore Airlines flight.
The Targeted Theft in Business Class
Liu Ming, a 26-year-old Chinese national, boarded the Singapore Airlines service from Dubai to Singapore on 7 August with a specific criminal intent, prosecutors stated. The court heard he targeted the business class cabin to steal high-value items from other passengers.
Liu was seated five rows in front of a 52-year-old Azerbaijani male passenger and one row ahead of the man's wife. In the early hours of 8 August, after the dinner service had concluded and the cabin lights were dimmed, Liu made his move while the victims were asleep.
Confrontation and Arrest
The victim's wife awoke from a short nap to see Liu walking to her husband's seat, removing a bag from the overhead compartment, and carrying it back to his own seat. She immediately confronted him and, unsatisfied with his response, alerted the cabin crew.
Realising he had been caught, Liu returned the luggage to the exact overhead compartment. He initially claimed to the crew that he had mistaken the bag for his own, a story he maintained upon arrival. However, airport staff at Singapore's Changi Airport were informed and Liu was arrested.
High-Value Contents and Legal Consequences
The bag contained items with a total value exceeding S$100,000, equivalent to approximately £57,625. The inventory included:
- A significant amount of cash.
- A Huawei laptop worth around S$2,100.
- 56 premium cigars valued at over S$5,400.
- A Chopard watch worth more than S$35,000.
- An Audemars Piguet watch valued at over S$51,000.
Fortunately, no items were missing due to the wife's swift intervention. Deputy Public Prosecutor Cheah Wenjie argued for a custodial sentence of up to 20 months, emphasising that such thefts damage the reputation of both the national carrier and Singapore's tourism industry. Liu eventually pleaded guilty to one charge of theft.
Investigations revealed Liu was uncooperative, persistently denying the theft. Police also noted his own luggage was entirely different in appearance and material from the one he stole, undermining his 'mistaken bag' defence.
A Pattern of In-Flight Crime
This case follows another recent incident where a Chinese man, Zhang Kun, was jailed for 10 months in May for stealing a backpack from the overhead locker on a Scoot flight from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore in March. The sentencing of Liu Ming highlights ongoing concerns regarding targeted theft on commercial aircraft, particularly in premium cabins where passengers may carry high-worth belongings.
