R Paneir Selvam, chairman of the Association of Legal and Policy Researchers, told FMT he believed many thieves on the prowl today had improved their art because they were receiving top-notch training.
He said the recent CCTV footage of a pickpocketing incident at Sunway Pyramid appeared to show that the culprits had received such training.
According to a report on the incident, fifteen seconds was all it took for the victim to lose her mobile phone to the thieves.
“There’s a possibility these thieves received their training from a guild for thieves either inside or outside the country,” Selvam said.
He said the two pickpockets, who appeared to be women, could well be members of an international crime syndicate.
“Organised crime operates internationally,” he said. “What usually happens is they send these people to go to a particular country where they do these acts for a short period of time before moving them to another country.”
Referring to the Sunway incident, he said it was obvious to him that the thieves were professionals. “They must have had a lot of practice and some sort of guidance.”
He spoke of stages in the training of thieves. “They must go through certain stages to attain their skill. Otherwise they are not allowed to go and do this kind of act in public. Only after a certain stage are they allowed to go into the market and use their skill.”
He said members of the public needed to adopt certain practices when going out in order to compete with “advanced thieves”.
“My advice is that you must always be alert and always be aware of your surroundings.
“Also don’t take a lot of cash with you. Nowadays, there are cashless systems and you are able to purchase things even with your debit cards.
“When you do have cash on you, always keep them in separate pockets. That way, even if a thief manages to steal some money from one pocket, you have saved the rest in the other pocket.
“These are some of the things people can do to keep up with the advancement thieves have achieved.”
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