10 Facts About the Boon Lay MRT Robber Who Tried to Fake His Looks

I’m not sure about you, but when news broke out about the Boon Lay MRT Station robbery and this image was released to the public, I was 98% sure this guy was using the turban to cover his real identity.

And I was pretty sure that 98% of the population think so too.

I was right, and so do most of the people. He isn’t a Sikh, and I think he’s part of the 2% that thinks that the earth is flat after seeing this image:

And also part of the 2% that seriously think he can outsmart us, and outsmart the efficient Singapore Police Force.

Well, he’s caught and guess what? He’s shocked that he got caught.

Here are 10 facts about his capture.

What Happened

For a start, here’s what happened: last Saturday, on 28 July 2018, Sheikh Md Razan, the suspect, had tried to rob ValueMax, a pawnshop that’s just below Boon Lay MRT Station.

Using a knife and a replica gun, he “nervously” instructed the staff to hand over money, behaving “like a kid playing some pretence game.” The staff had calmly said “no money”, and the robber threatened to blow up the pawnshop, threw an object that he claimed was explosive into the shop and fled.

The staff then tossed the object out of the shop and gave chase, but could not find him.

An MRT exit was closed for more than an hour back then, and the manhunt for him started.

What He Did After That

If you’ve watched enough TV, you’ll know that robbers would run off with a car that’s waiting somewhere nearby. The robber would then jump into the car and sped off as the protagonist looks from afar (and usually, the camera would focus on the car plate).

Then the protagonist would do a Jackie Chan and take a shortcut, jumping off cliffs and stairs, and finally intercepts the car –

Okay, I digress, but you get the idea: they’ll flee in a spectacular manner.

But this Boon Lay robber ran to an HDB flat nearby (at Jurong West: do note that all the areas around Boon Lay MRT Station are Jurong West). He slotted his clothing and turban, and everything else, in a black backpack and guess what?

He placed it behind some potted plants outside a resident’s unit.

Needlessly to say, the resident found the bag within hours (heck, he doesn’t even need to find, it’s right there!) and call the police.

The replica gun is still not found

The replica gun is dumped in a dustbin that’s a minute’s walk away from the pawnshop. When officers went to look for it, it was no longer there.

You’ve got to really give it to the hero. Throwing it away in a rubbish bin…that’s one minute’s walk away?

Also, the fake weapon is allegedly assembled from spare plastic parts. Hmm. He really take DIY to a whole new level.

Police worked on the backpack lead

You know there are cameras around HDB? Yeah, they’re used by the police but not to catch you for littering (but seriously, don’t litter lah). This is when it proves to be extremely useful: with these cameras, the police were able to identify the man.

The power of technology used right: Facebook, you reading this?

Manhunt That Takes A lot of Manpower

It should be clear by now: the Singapore Police Force has great singers…

…great actors…

(That’s our video when we worked with them; subscribe to our YouTube channel for more videos like this leh)

…and of course, also great cops.

The entire operation involved officers from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Police Intelligence Department, Special Operations Command and the six Police Land Divisions. But within 100 hours, they managed to find the suspect, and that’s an achievement by itself because…

He was found far from where he struck

It’s unclear why he chose Boon Lay, but the robber apparently lived in Muscat Street, which is somewhere near Bugis MRT Station.

The police arrested him there yesterday (1 August 2018) at around 7:00 p.m.. Definitely not a good August for the robber.

He is a Bangladeshi construction worker who overstayed

Yeah, he isn’t a Sikh.

The turban was a ruse (that everyone knew). He was a construction worker who overstayed in Singapore since last year December. The 29-year-old was, well, “surprised” when he was caught.

I’m surprised that he’s surprised.

The police brought him back to the scene today to assist in investigations

Today, he went back into the pawnshop by officers. And this time round, the exit wasn’t closed.

What the Police Said

The Director of CID has this to say: “The man went to great lengths to conceal his identity and cover his tracks to evade detection and arrest…this case required meticulous police work and the combined and coordinated efforts of officers from various Singapore Police Force units, working tirelessly round the clock to pursue all available leads to successfully arrest the man.”

Well done, officers. Now you all can take your leave and sleep well le!

What’s going to happen to the robber

He would be charged tomorrow (3 August 2018) for attempted armed robbery and exhibiting an imitation firearm when committing a scheduled offence.

If convicted of armed robbery, he could face between two and seven years in jail, and at least 12 strokes of the cane. If convicted of exhibiting an imitation firearm when committing a scheduled offence, the suspect could be imprisoned for up to 10 years.

Of course, we all know he did them both.