Malaysian family steals 600 dishes from restaurant: a 1,250 baht hotpot heist exposed on social media

A Malaysian restaurant owner took to social media to express his dismay after a family of five ordered and subsequently stole over 600 dishes from his establishment. The incident, which took place on October 8, was discovered after the owner reviewed CCTV footage, revealing the family’s unusual behaviour.

The owner of a hotpot restaurant in Bintulu, Sarawak, Malaysia, posted on the restaurant’s Facebook page on October 10, expressing his disappointment with certain customers who, he claimed, “came prepared to steal.”

The incident occurred at 2.30pm, involving a family of five, three adults and two children, who attended the establishment’s Happy Hour buffet promotion.

On this occasion, the family ordered an astounding 250 dishes of pork and 350 dishes of mutton. The total cost of their meal came to 163.3 Ringgit (1,250 baht) broken down into 39.42 Ringgit (300 baht) per adult and 26.82 Ringgit (200 baht) per child, with a further 5% discount for members.

The restaurant staff and owner became suspicious due to the large quantity of food ordered. However, they continued to serve the food as ordered, believing it was possible the customers could eat this much.

It was only after reviewing the CCTV footage that the owner realised only a fraction of the food was consumed. The remainder was bagged up and taken away by the customers, reported SAYS.

Hiding food

The owner said that the main point here is they actually came prepared to do this.

“I checked the CCTV footage and saw clearly that the children were sneaking meat into plastic bags under the table. Did they want to take the food home to eat?”

In his post, the owner expressed his disappointment, not only with the customers’ actions but also that they were teaching their children to steal.

“You have to understand that Bintulu is a small place. You know me, and I know you. Doing business is tough enough as it is. Why do you have to make things harder for me?

“Everyone is having a tough time right now, so I’m trying to make affordable food so that people can eat to their fill without having to dig too deep into their pockets.”

Expressing his hope that revealing this behaviour would serve as a lesson to other families about setting a good example for their children, the owner remained undecided about whether to involve the police, even if the family offered to compensate the restaurant for the stolen food.

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