SINGAPORE: A man was jailed for three weeks on Thursday (Aug 1) for stealing two birds worth S$800 from a travel agency.
The Sun Conure bird and love bird, worth S$600 and S$200 respectively, belonged to Ms Caron Lim Wai Ling, who worked at the Asian Compass Travel company at Block 106, Yishun Ring Road.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe birds were placed in a cage outside the office by an administrative assistant on Mar 6 this year.
Less than half an hour after placing them there, the assistant realised she could no longer hear them chirping.
She discovered that the birds were missing, and quickly told Ms Lim, who got another admin assistant to inform the authorities.
The assistant called the police and said that her boss' birds had been stolen.
AdvertisementAdvertisementMs Lim was looking for the missing birds when one of the neighbours told her that he had seen a man carrying the birds away in a plastic bag.
The police arrived soon after and detained Mohammed Ali, 36, at a void deck in the area, and the birds were retrieved from the plastic bag he carried.
He admitted to taking the birds with the intention of keeping them.
Mohammed, who worked as a driver at the time, pleaded guilty to one charge of theft. His defence lawyer said his client was "very, very sorry for what he has done and he vows never ever to repeat such an offence or any other offence in future".
District Judge John Ng told the man that even though the birds were recovered, he could well have faced several months of jail. However, he said: "We have to always maintain proportionality."
Mohammed could have been jailed for up to three years, fined, or both.
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