Man gets 12 months’ jail for stealing bonsai plants from community gardens

SINGAPORE —  Attracted by bonsai plants he chanced upon in the neighbourhood, a 51-year-old man broke into several community gardens and a residential flat and stole nine plants worth S$12,400 in two months last year.

For trespassing and stealing the bonsai plants on five separate occasions in May and June last year, Teo Tiong Guan was on Wednesday (Feb 24) sentenced to 12 months’ jail.

The court heard that Teo first eyed the bonsai plants at Yuhua Community Centre on May 14 last year, while he was walking past them. He plotted to steal them as he found them beautiful.

Three days later at about 3.25pm, Teo turned up at the centre’s bonsai garden, which was locked. He reached over the surrounding brick wall into the premises and grabbed two pots of bonsai plants, valued at S$2,000 each. He transferred the plants into plastic bags he had brought with him and placed the pots back. He then brought both plants back to his flat and planted them in his own pots. 

Two days later, he walked past a Residents’ Corner Garden at Block 233A Jurong East Street 21 at night and noticed plants belonging to the Jurong East Residents’ Committee stored within the garden, which is surrounded by walls and a metal roof.  

At around 2am the following day, he returned with a metal-cutting tool and cut the padlock securing a door to the garden. He then plucked two adenium plants — from the bonsai family — from their pots and placed them into plastic bags he had prepared. Teo again brought these plants, valued at S$300 each, home and planted them in his own pots. 

Court documents showed that Teo committed two more similar thefts at Yuhua Community Centre, and another at a flat at Block 261, Jurong East Street 24. 

Deputy Public Prosecutor Tan Soo Tet said Teo’s offences were aggravated as they were premeditated and the stolen items were of high value. Teo had also continued offending when he was not caught initially, he added. 

Pleading for leniency, Teo’s defence lawyer told the court he suffered from antisocial personality disorder and is still receiving psychiatric treatment. He also noted that Teo had cooperated with the police and the plants were recovered upon his arrest. 

For committing house trespass in order to steal, Teo could have been jailed seven years and/or fined for each charge.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Culture, Community and Youth Minister Grace Fu, who is Member of Parliament for Yuhua, revealed Teo, who has five children, was a Yuhua resident. “It pains me to see one of us committing thefts. However, his acts have caused much anxiety and distress on the community,” she said. “Members of our bonsai interest group have been dealing with the loss of precious plants that were painstakingly nurtured. The sense of intrusion of privacy and infringement of security was upsetting.” She added that the community stood ready to help Teo’s family “deal with the change”.

The commencement of Teo’s sentence was deferred to April 1 upon his request, as he had just started a new job this month.