Serial thief who held woman hostage gets corrective training
A serial thief, Mohamed Fazulla Mohamed Khan, fled when he spotted police officers who were waiting in ambush.
Running into a Pasir Ris flat, he refused to surrender.
Instead, he held a 23-year-old woman captive in her bathroom at knifepoint and it led to a four-hour stand-off.
Fazulla, 36, was yesterday given the minimum of five years' corrective training and three strokes of the cane.
Corrective training is given to repeat offenders, without the usual one-third remission for good behaviour.
Fazulla had pleaded guilty in January to nine offences, including criminal intimidation, resisting arrest, theft, and drug possession and consumption.
Another 21 charges, including one for wrongful confinement, were taken into consideration during sentencing.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Sheryl Yeo told District Judge Mathew Joseph that Fazulla was a persistent and habitual offender and corrective training was necessary for his reformation.
Fazulla had stolen a Rolex Datejust watch worth $3,300 on March 16, 2016, from a Thomson Road store.
Plainclothes officers had set up an ambush to nab him five days later.
They spotted him at a staircase landing at the foot of a Pasir Ris block at about 3pm and gave chase when he ran upstairs.
He entered a fourth-storey flat as its main gate was unlocked, grabbed a knife with a 12.5cm-long blade from the kitchen, and knocked on the bathroom door.
A woman, who was inside, opened the door and was shocked to see him.
She tried to close the door but he barged in and did not let her leave.
Confining the woman for about an hour, Fazulla released her unharmed at 4.50pm.
But he still refused to surrender and threatened to stab himself. An airbag was set up on the ground level.
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Fazulla finally surrendered at about 7.20pm.
A packet containing methamphetamine was found in a black sling bag that Fazulla was seen discarding before his arrest.
The Rolex watch he stole was found in his flat a week later.
Fazulla continued to offend while out on bail, stealing a watch, a Chanel wallet and a $3,350 Chanel bag from three shops between August 2016 and December 2018.
He also stole a CashCard from a taxi driver.
In mitigation, lawyer Patrick Fernandez said Fazulla has antisocial personality disorder and is unable to control his impulses, but this did not justify his actions.
Judge Joseph said corrective training would be useful for Fazulla to reintegrate into society.
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