SINGAPORE: A hawker had to post a plea on Facebook for people to buy his nasi briyani, after he said someone claiming to be from the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) placed a bulk order but did not collect it.
In a Facebook post on the night of Wednesday (Sept 10), the Ministry of Defence said the SAF had investigated but “found no evidence that these individuals are affiliated with the SAF”.
Muhammad Shazain Faiha Muslim Food Paradise, a hawker stall in Tiong Bahru Market, posted on Sept 9 that it “was scammed with a fake order of 150 packets of chicken and mutton briyani”.
Chinese media outlet 8world reported that the person who made the order claimed to be an SAF representative.
The man reportedly told the hawker that he was unable to put down a deposit for the order, as “the military is a government agency and therefore cannot provide a deposit”.
In addition to the food, the man requested bottles of mineral water.
The hawker had also given the man a discount for the food and increased the amount of meat and rice in each serving, after learning that the food would be eaten by soldiers.
When nobody arrived to collect the order, the hawker realised he had been scammed, according to the report.
Hoping that the food would not go to waste, the hawker put out a plea on his Facebook page on Sept 9 for people to buy the food at a special price.
Tanjong Pagar GRC MP Foo Cexiang, who was tagged in the hawker’s post, called on residents to purchase the prepared briyani.
“Lunch time may be over but on special days, we can allow ourselves a good briyani tea break – so calling all our Tiong Bahru residents, go down and get ‘em before they run out!” he said in a post on Facebook on Sept 9.
Later that day, Foo said all 150 packets of briyani were sold.
In a separate Facebook post on Sept 9, the hawker said 80 packs of briyani were distributed to residents in the nearby rental flats, and some people had paid for the food to be donated to workers and people in need.
Mindef said in a Facebook post on Sept 10 that the SAF had investigated reports of the fake bulk food order.
“Based on the information provided by the complainants, we have found no evidence that these individuals are affiliated with the SAF,” it said.
“We take a serious view of this, and urge the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the police.” - The Straits Times/ANN
