A 26-year-old Chinese national has been sentenced to 20 months in prison in Singapore after attempting to steal high-value items from a fellow passenger’s luggage during a long-haul international flight.
Liu Ming pleaded guilty to one charge of theft following an incident on a flight travelling from Dubai to Singapore on 7 August. The court heard that Liu boarded the aircraft with the specific intention of stealing expensive items from passengers seated in the business class cabin.
According to prosecutors, Liu deliberately targeted business class travellers, believing they were more likely to carry luxury goods and large sums of cash. His plan, however, was foiled by the vigilance of one passenger, whose swift action ensured that no property was ultimately lost.
Liu was seated five rows ahead of an Azerbaijani businessman, aged 52, and one row in front of the man’s wife. In the early hours of 8 August, after dinner service had ended and cabin lights were dimmed to allow passengers to sleep, Liu decided to act.
The court was told that the victim was asleep at the time. However, his wife awoke from a short nap and noticed Liu walking towards her husband’s seat. She then saw him remove her husband’s luggage from the overhead compartment and carry it back towards his own seat.
Suspicious of his behaviour, the woman confronted Liu and questioned him about the bag. When she could not understand his explanation, she immediately alerted members of the cabin crew. Realising that he had been spotted and that the situation was escalating, Liu returned to the overhead compartment and replaced the luggage where he had taken it from.
Liu later claimed to cabin crew that he had mistakenly taken the wrong bag, insisting that he had confused it with his own luggage. Despite this explanation, the crew treated the matter seriously and informed ground staff ahead of the aircraft’s arrival in Singapore.
Upon landing at , Liu was arrested by airport police officers. Subsequent investigations revealed that the victim’s bag contained items valued at more than S$100,000, equivalent to approximately £57,625.
The court heard that the bag held a number of luxury and high-value items, including cash, a Huawei laptop worth about S$2,100, 56 cigars valued at more than S$5,400, a Chopard luxury watch worth over S$35,000, and an Audemars Piguet watch valued at more than S$51,000.
Fortunately, no items were found missing. Prosecutors said this was only because the victim’s wife confronted Liu almost immediately after he removed the luggage from the overhead compartment.
During police investigations, Liu was described as uncooperative. He continued to deny having any criminal intent and maintained that the incident was a genuine mistake. However, investigators established that Liu’s own bag was completely different from the victim’s luggage, differing clearly in both appearance and material. This significantly undermined his claim that he had accidentally taken the wrong bag.
In court, Deputy Public Prosecutor Cheah Wenjie argued that Liu’s actions were premeditated and posed a serious threat to passenger confidence and aviation safety. He noted that Liu had boarded the flight with the sole aim of stealing from unsuspecting passengers while they slept.
“The proliferation of theft offences on board Singapore’s national carrier would tarnish its reputation, and that of Singapore’s tourist industry,” the prosecutor told the court, urging the judge to impose a deterrent sentence of up to 20 months’ imprisonment.
The court agreed with the prosecution, citing the high value of the targeted items, the calculated nature of the offence, and Liu’s refusal to cooperate with investigators. Liu was subsequently sentenced to 20 months in jail.
The case has renewed attention on the issue of in-flight theft, particularly on long-haul routes where passengers often sleep for extended periods and may be less alert to their surroundings. While such incidents remain relatively rare, Singapore authorities have repeatedly warned that crimes committed on board aircraft are treated with the utmost seriousness.
The sentence also comes amid a rise in similar cases. In May this year, another Chinese national, Zhang Kun, was jailed for 10 months after stealing from a fellow passenger on a Scoot flight. Zhang was arrested on a Kuala Lumpur to Singapore flight on 16 March after taking a backpack from an overhead compartment.
Singapore’s strict approach reflects its broader efforts to safeguard its reputation as a global aviation hub and a safe destination for travellers. Authorities have emphasised that even attempted thefts, where no property is ultimately lost, will attract heavy penalties.
Passengers are also being reminded to remain vigilant during flights, including in premium cabins. Aviation experts advise travellers to keep extremely valuable items close at hand and to report any suspicious behaviour immediately to cabin crew.
The sentencing of Liu Ming sends a strong message that criminal acts committed mid-air will not be tolerated and that Singapore will continue to enforce tough penalties to protect passengers and uphold confidence in its aviation and tourism sectors.
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