Low crime doesn’t mean no crime in Singapore and given recent events, F&B owner Ben Yeo is even more acutely aware of that.
Across 10 days in June, his Tan Xiang Chai Chee coffeeshop suffered two burglaries.
Located in an industrial canteen in Chai Chee, the wet market-themed coffeeshop comprises five stalls – three tenants which include a cai fan stall and two others which the local actor-host and his partners operate.
The burglaries happened in the wee hours of June 15 and 25. On the first instance, the burglar pried open a locked metal cabinet housing the cai fan stall’s safe, said Ben, 47. As a result, more than $900 was stolen that night.
CCTV footage of the two incidents depicted a man wearing a cap, mask and gloves entering the coffeeshop through the back door of a neighbouring beef noodle stall. As of press time, investigations have not determined whether both burglaries were committed by the same person.
When AsiaOne reached out to Ben on July 1, he told us the burglar switched one of the CCTV cameras off on the second break-in before forcing open the same cabinet. However, he was unable to open the new and more secured safe.
Ben added that his stalls were unaffected during the burglary as they do not keep cash overnight due to management practices, though the perpetrator appeared to have searched around one of his stalls.
He added that after the first burglary, notices were immediately sent out to all the tenants to stay vigilant. The coffeeshop is in the midst of updating security and they have reported the break-ins to the police.
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“It was an unfortunate incident, and our thoughts are with our tenant. We sincerely hope this will not happen again,” he said.
“The safety and well-being of our tenants and customers remain very important to us. We encourage everyone to stay vigilant, look out for one another and report any suspicious activity promptly. Together, we can help create a safer environment for everyone.”
Apart from Tan Xiang Chai Chee which opened in April 2024, Ben and his partners also have Tan Xiang Playground located at 5 Kallang Place and Tan Xiang Woodlands at 101 Woodlands Ave 12.
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