Man in SCDF T-Shirt Caught on CCTV Stealing E-Bike Outside HDB Flat

Last Updated on 2023-12-11 , 9:30 am

As we all know, delivery riders’ e-bikes are crucial to their livelihoods.

On 2 December, a delivery rider discovered that his e-bike was missing. 

According to CCTV footage, his bike was stolen by what seemed to be a man wearing a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) T-shirt.

TikTok Video

On the same day of the incident, the rider’s friend took to TikTok to spread awareness about the ordeal.

@foodpandax3 Just another ricebowl got stolen at TPY Blk 122 today at 1.20am 02/12/2023. 😭 Please help owner of the SR2 bluetag to keep a lookout at south areas. Bro forget to check at the camera located directly above. 😶‍🌫️🩵🐳 #fyp #foryou #foryoupage #fypシ #fypシ゚viral #foodpanda #foodpandarider #foodpandadelivery #fooddeliveryrider #fooddelivery #toprider #ebike ♬ original sound – LJ MUSIC

The TikTok video was of CCTV footage of the incident.

The theft occurred at 1:20 am in Block 122 Lorong 2 Toa Payoh.

In the video, a man can be seen pacing back and forth outside the flat.

At one point, he touched the e-bike’s handlebars before moving away.

He also tried turning the e-bike’s key.

A few seconds later, he is seen walking by the house another few times before looking into it to ensure the coast was clear.

He then bent down to grab the charger, revealing the letters “SCDF” at the back of his shirt.

He is then seen walking away.

Only a few seconds later, he returned and stole the e-bike.

Owner’s Response

Speaking to 8world, 25-year-old Lin Zhenggang (transliterated from Mandarin) recounted his ordeal.

He said he only realised his bicycle was stolen when he left the house at 1:45 am.

Mr Lin said that he did not know who the man was and had never met him before. 

Furthermore, he had left the e-bike unlocked as the bike needed a key to start.

However, he had accidentally left the key in the e-bike that day, making it vulnerable to theft.

He added that he had previously thought about installing an alarm before.

Unfortunately, the incident occurred before he could get around to installing one.

As a delivery rider, he was very anxious about the theft.

He shared the incident on his Instagram page and amongst rider chat groups on WhatsApp and Telegram.

He also made a police report.

His friend helped to spread awareness about the incident by posting the CCTV footage on TikTok.

Someone Reached Out to the Owner

That same night, a person allegedly reached out to the owner.

According to chat screenshots seen by Mothership, the person said he wasn’t the person in the video.

He asked Mr Lin to take down the video.

Notably, two things were uploaded onto social media. Besides the CCTV footage, another photo of the culprit was also posted.

The person said that of the two pieces of media, only one of them was of him.

Mr Lin said he suspected the person he was talking to was the thief and decided to play along.

When he asked the person if he was the culprit, he replied, “Look like me. But not me.”

The person also claimed that he was with his girlfriend at the time of the incident.

He added that he knew who the “real thief” was.

He said the “real thief” was from Yishun, a claim made by a few others who reached out to Mr Lin.

The person asked, “Bro it not me why you post me?”

Other Claims Made by the Person

Mothership reported that the person claimed the thief had already sold off the bike.

He then asked if he could pay Mr Lin back with cash.

However, Mr Lin wanted his e-bike back.

The person then said the thief would need a week to return the bike.

Mr Lin said he was confused by the response.

The person then said, “He tries to get back your bike, if don’t have you want to do anything to him also can.”

8world reported that the person eventually admitted to being the thief and crashed the bike after stealing it.

He left it in the Mandai area.

The person added that the bike was damaged.

Upon being aware of the location of his e-bike, Mr Lin went to find it.

He scoured the Mandai area for about half an hour before discovering his e-bike.

Since the theft, Mr Lin has been unable to work.

He alleged that although the person who contacted him had initially agreed to pay compensation, he refused to meet him.

Mr Lin told 8world that he would be sending the e-bike for repairs.

He didn’t reveal the total cost of the repairs required.

TikTok User Thanked Community for Help

At the time of writing, the TikTok video has garnered over 239,000 views.

Netizens identified the thief from his T-shirt and tattoos, showing how scarily precise internet sleuthing can be.

The thief’s name and other personal details were shared in the comments.

On 5 December, the TikTok user posted a video thanking the community for their help in identifying the culprit.

@foodpandax3 A big thanks to the community, for giving informations that finally led to the culprit. The stolen e-bike was found at Mandai, sadly with damages. IO has contacted the owner for more details and they are looking into the matter. Let the footage serve as a importance of having a CCTV. This way, we can prevent people from ‘block shopping’ outside your units. For more of the story, do check out mothership’s website. 👏🏻🩵🐳 #fyp #foryou #foryoupage #fypシ #fypシ゚viral #foodpanda #foodpandarider #foodpandadelivery #fooddeliveryrider #fooddelivery #toprider #capcut #templatecapcut #mothership #mothershipsg ♬ original sound – ᴘᴀɴᴅᴀ•ᴋɪɴɢ™ -💜

In the video’s caption, he wrote, “A big thanks to the community, for giving information that finally led to the culprit. The stolen e-bike was found at Mandai, sadly with damages.”

He mentioned that an investigating officer (IO) has contacted the owner for more details and is looking into the matter.

Speaking to AsiaOne, the user, who wanted to be known as Xiao Wei, confirmed that the thief contacted Mr Lin after the video went viral.

He also said that the thief crashed and abandoned the vehicle near a construction site in Mandai.

Xiao Wei thanked the delivery rider community and netizens for helping identify the thief.

He noted that the video was never meant to humiliate the thief and said that nobody likes their “rice bowl” to get stolen, referencing the fact that the e-bike was essential to Mr Lin’s livelihood.

He added that he hopes that those who watch the video will think twice before stealing from delivery riders.

Is the Culprit from SCDF?

Responding to media queries, the police confirmed that a report was made and that investigations are ongoing.

SCDF also told AsiaOne that they are aware of the viral CCTV footage and are working to verify if the man is from SCDF. 

An SCDF spokesperson has since confirmed with Goody Feed that the man is not an SCDF personnel.

Notably, wearing the SCDF uniform or using any SCDF insignia is illegal when one is not a member.

A person found guilty of such an offence is liable to a fine of not more than $2,500 or an imprisonment term of not more than six months, or both.