New gang of women thieves in 'strip and shout' to stun victims!

"She quickly took off her top and she was braless. She then screamed ‘molest!' which threw my husband who was pursuing her off guard," the Sun quoted hawker Chow Kwai Chet, who recounted an incident when a woman was caught stealing a customer's wallet, as saying.

Earlier, he had tried to nab the petite woman, believed to be a Vietnamese in her 30s, when she was caught stealing his wallet.

"However, a female hawker slapped and scolded her," Chow said at a press conference with MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Seri Michael Chong.

Another hawker, Leng Chin Huat, said that the women would usually come in a group of three to four individuals and were believed to be part of a syndicate.

According to Huat, they managed to apprehend three Vietnamese women for stealing and had handed them over to the police.

"However, the police had to let them go as they could not find the stolen items on them," he said.

SS2 Morning Market Traders Association chairman Khor Choon Seong said that the women would only take the money and not the credit cards.

"They would then throw away the purse or wallet. Customers would only find out that they had been robbed when they wanted to buy something," he added.

Chong also said that the incident usually took place during the weekends.