56YO Man Jailed And Fined For Stealing 12 Durians In Toa Payoh

Anyone who says that the birth of their child was the happiest moment in their life has obviously never had durian.

You see, the durian is a special, special fruit.

Like a thug with a heart of gold, the durian is thorny on the outside, soft and sweet on the inside. One creamy mouthful of durian will make you forget all about the heat, CPF, and even your mortality.

Yes, it’s that good. Good enough to steal, even.

Man Jailed And Fined For Stealing 12 Durians In Toa Payoh

In today’s episode of Did That Really Happen?, a 56-year-old man was sentenced to a day’s jail and fined S$1,200 on Monday (Nov 11) for stealing 12 durians over three days from a stall in Toa Payoh.

The man, Na Buck Nam, pleaded guilty to two charges of theft, with a third charge taken into consideration.

Na, who was unemployed, stole the fruit from a durian stall at Block 186, Toa Payoh Central last year.

According to CNA, he stole from the same store over a period of three days.

He first stole two durians worth S$20, then five durians valued at S$50, and another five durians on the third occasion.

The rate at which this man consumes durians is more concerning than his actual crime, to be honest.

Caught on CCTV

Na thought he had gotten away with it, but unfortunately, he got caught by the four alphabets criminals dread the most: CCTV.

After discovering that some of his durians were missing, the shop assistant viewed closed-circuit television footage from the stall and saw Na stealing durians by sticking his hand through the canvas sheet at his stall.

The assistant quickly called the police and made a report. It probably went something like this:

Stall owner: Police, I have an emergency!

Police: OK, calm down, Sir. What happened?

Stall Owner: Someone stole my durians. 

Police: Your… durians?

Stall Owner: Yes, my durians. 

Police: …

Stall Owner: …

Police: That doesn’t seem like an emergency, Sir.

Stall Owner: They were Mao Shan Wang durians.

Police: That motherf- OK, we’re on the way.

Na was traced and arrested later that night near a McDonald’s restaurant in Toa Payoh. He admitted to stealing durians from the stall and said he had eaten them.

He also admitted to taking the other durians from the stall, which he also claimed to have eaten.

Now, I know what you’re thinking – did he just say he ate 12 durians in three daysCNAs article does not make this clear, but if he did, this man should at least be given a medal before he is sent to jail.

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For each count of theft, Na could have been jailed for up to seven years and fined. All for a mouthful of durian.

Na: It was several mouthfuls.

Fair enough.