Chef allegedly steals thousands from boss again before fleeing, owes $70k: ‘He knelt down and cried’
A chef who fell to his knees and begged for forgiveness after stealing money from his employer in June stole thousands of dollars from the same stall just two months later, proceeding to skip work and becoming uncontactable following day.
His employer estimated that the chef owed him more than $70,000 in total.
The 65-year-old stall owner, Tony (transliterated), who operates three zichar stalls in Singapore, told Shin Min Daily News that the chef failed to turn up for work on Aug 27 and was uncontactable. Tony then went to the chef’s home to look for him.
“When he opened the door, I noticed several bags on the table that we normally use to store money at the stall. He knew he could not hide it anymore, so he asked me to wait outside.
“After a while, he came out, admitted to stealing the money and knelt in front of me crying, saying he would write a letter of apology.”
Tony said the chef, surnamed Chen (transliterated), is a Malaysian who was also responsible for running the stall along Kim Keat Avenue, having worked for Tony for over 10 years.
However, Tony said he later discovered that about $4,300 was missing from the business’ earnings in the past two or three days.
When confronted, the chef admitted that he had taken a female colleague’s key before entering the stall to steal the money. He had also allegedly deleted CCTV footage, Tony said.
“I have high blood pressure, and I was extremely angry at the time. I even wanted to hit him, but I held myself back. He said he would write a letter of apology, so I told him I would think about it and left first.”
Chef allegedly owes boss more than $70,000
However, at noon the next day, one of the female workers received a message from the chef saying that he could not pay back his debts and telling everyone not to look for him.
Tony made a police report at 4pm that day. In response to queries from Stomp, the police confirmed a report had been lodged and said investigations are ongoing.
Tony added that he had treated the chef well over the years. The chef was paid a monthly salary of $4,400, with food and accommodation provided.
He also previously lent the chef $40,000 to buy a house and helped him repay more than $10,000 in loans from loan sharks.
Including his advances for September and October salaries and his December bonus, Tony said the chef owed him more than $70,000 in total — but he had disappeared without saying a word.
Not the first time chef allegedly stole money
Tony said this was not the first time the chef had allegedly stolen money.
In 2019, the chef was caught stealing $260. He allegedly stole another $3,600 in June 2026.
On both occasions, he wrote letters of apology, and Tony chose to look past the incidents because of his good work attitude.
“In June, he also knelt down and begged for forgiveness. He said he would repay me $1,500 every month and claimed he had no choice but to do it,” Tony recalled.
He added he had trusted the chef because they had worked together for many years.
Theft leaves owner feeling betrayed
Tony had been overseas on holiday and therefore did not collect the stall’s earnings from mid-August, which he believes gave the chef an opportunity to steal the money — leaving Tony hurt and betrayed.
Apart from the alleged theft, the chef had also borrowed money from several licensed moneylenders, using the company’s address and contact details, Tony said.
As a result, Tony said he had been receiving debt-collection calls every day and was frustrated by the situation.
He added that the chef has a girlfriend in Vietnam and the couple have a one-year-old child. The chef had also travelled overseas several times in the past year, sometimes making three trips within two months.
Tony believes he may have fled to Vietnam this time as well.
Chef allegedly borrowed more than $30,000 from co-workers
Tony also said the chef had borrowed money from several employees, the total amount allegedly exceeding $30,000.
A 24-year-old waitress, Ms Ge (transliterated), said the chef borrowed $2,500 from her on Aug 28, claiming he needed the money urgently and promising to repay her soon.
But he fled not long after, she said.
“My salary is only $1,800. I hope he will be caught as soon as possible.”
Second cook Ah Jian (transliterated), 30, said he had lent the chef $16,000.
After learning that the chef had fled, he said he was both angry and under financial pressure, and hoped the chef would come forward to take responsibility for his actions.
“Good brothers should stand by each other through thick and thin, but he stabbed me in the back instead,” Jian said.
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