Trio charged with stealing CNY goodies

A couple and their daughter were charged on Thursday with stealing Chinese New Year delicacies, including abalone and bird's nest.

Chan Wee Kuan, 53, and Tay Meng Koong, 52, who are believed to be married, and Chan Yu Huan, 23, are accused of stealing $230 worth of items from Giant Hypermart at IMM Shopping Centre in Jurong East at 10.15pm on Jan 7.

All three are unemployed.

No details of the alleged theft were mentioned in the charge sheets read to them in Mandarin by the court interpreter. None of the trio showed any emotion in the dock.

They did not enter a plea.

They did not have a lawyer, and the court set bail of $5,000 for each of them.

Their cases will be mentioned again on Feb 13. If convicted of theft, each could be jailed for up to seven years and fined up to $10,000.

Separately, the police on Thursday arrested two suspects, a man aged 25 and a woman, 45, in connection with another case of abalone theft. A spokesman said: "Police received a report of a case of theft from a supermarket in Holland Avenue, where two cans of abalones valued at $199.60 were stolen."

This year, canned abalones cost about the same as last year. A can from Australia costs between $40 and $60.

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