KUCHING: A proprietor in the Muara Tabuan commercial centre is again licking his ‘wounds’, counting cumulative losses of about RM10,000 to several break-ins since he was in business 16 years ago.
Preferred to be known only as Chen, he claimed the outlet he runs has already suffered three break-ins this year alone.
The most recent case being yesterday when he stood dumbfounded by the missing 32-inch TV and audio system placed near the counter cabinet at his shop entrance. He believed the burglary took place at about 4am. The owner usually starts his business at 6am. Other stolen items included packets of cigarettes, an Astro decoder and some bottles of beer, which were all valued at over RM3,000.
“I don’t see any signs of break-in because whoever broke in here used a multi-purpose device to crack the lock at the front entrance. The counter area was in a mess and cabinet drawers were all checked out.
“I refuse to lodge a report with the police because there is no point. After so many break-ins, all they did was took my statements, came in here to gather a couple of fingerprints and nothing more.
“What irritated me most was the time I wasted waiting for the report to be filed. Can you believe it took me three hours to make a simple police report? Telling me about making a report, I’d say it’s totally pointless,” he spoke to thesundaypost and See Hua Daily News when met at his outlet yesterday.
The break-ins earlier this year happened in February and May. Of the previous losses, only three reports were made. Chen lamented that he was not alone on this, claiming that most of his neighbouring counterparts have also fallen prey to burglars.
He said he used to install a burglar alarm at the outlet until the intruders became technology savvy, as in capable of disabling the device. He therefore called for frequent police patrols in Muara Tabuan area to help him get a good night’s sleep.
“To think that I don’t know what I will see when I open my shop the next day, I just couldn’t sleep well. I read local Chinese newspapers that carried several public complaints about the rising crime in Kuching.
“What have the authorities been doing to help put our social security in proper order? Why are our top leaders and elected representatives not doing more for the people? During elections, they come for our votes; once elected, they don’t do their job.”
He added that police should also discharge their duties with greater efficiency to better protect properties and lives.