With nothing much to go on except for an empty pack of potato chips, Police have managed to arrest four 14-year-old youths who are believed to be involved in a case of snatch theft at Hougang Avenue 4 on 18 August 2010.

On 18 August 2010 at about 7.20 pm , a 32-year-old woman was waiting for the lift at Blk 578 Hougang Avenue 4 when an unknown youth dashed past her, snatched her bag containing $150/- cash and fled. The victim screamed and attempted to give chase but to no avail. However, she saw two other youths fleeing together with the snatch thief. The commotion alerted some residents who informed the victim that several boys who resembled the culprits were seen loitering at the stone table near the lift lobby earlier.

Following the report, officers from Ang Mo Kio Police Division responded swiftly to the scene. On scene investigations uncovered an empty pack of potato chips near the stone table. Upon close examination, the officers noted a shop name on the price tag found on the empty pack. With this lead, the officers managed to locate the said shop. Unfortunately, the shop owner was unable to be of much assistance and the shop did not have any CCTV installed. Undaunted, the officers expanded their search to cover all the CCTVs in the vicinity of the shop. Their efforts paid off when they managed to obtain some CCTV footage which captured several youths fitting the descriptions of the suspects. From the CCTV footage, the officers were able to narrow their search to a school based on the suspects' attire. This led to the subsequent arrest of the four suspects. Upon their arrest, cash amounting to $120/- was recovered from the suspects' possession and seized as case exhibits. Investigations are still on-going.

Persons found guilty of snatch theft under Section 356 of the Penal Code, Chapter 224 may be jailed up to 7 years and shall be liable to caning.

Commander of Ang Mo Kio Police Division, Deputy Assistant Commissioner (DAC) of Police Hsu Sin Yun, commended his officers for their good investigative skills which led to the arrests of the suspects. DAC Hsu also advised members of the public to be vigilant and aware of their surroundings. If confronted, members of the public should take note of the physical appearance and distinctive features of the culprits and call for the Police as soon as possible.