Man, allegedly intoxicated, caught on CCTV trashing Henri Charpentier Orchard Central, store seeking compensation - Mothership

The incident took place at about 4am on Sep. 13.

The Henri Charpentier store at Orchard Central was met with an unwelcome visitor in the wee hours of Sep. 13 when a man allegedly trashed it while intoxicated.

Speaking to Mothership, Ami, the director of Suzette International Pte. Ltd., which operates Henri Charpentier Singapore, said the incident took place at about 4am that day.

The scene was captured via the store's CCTV footage, which also included audio.

It happened at around 4am, according to timestamps on the footage. The store was closed at the time.

Another man and woman were with him, though the trio's relationship is unknown.

The source of his distress was also unclear.

Videos seen by Mothership showed the man inside the store for some time, shouting and cursing, and throwing and hitting furniture and fixtures.

At one point, he grabbed a table, threw it to the ground, dragged it out of the store, and threw it to the ground again.

At another point, he punched the cushion seats and shouted before removing one of its backrests and attempting to throw it on the ground.

He also appeared intoxicated, shouting and cursing unintelligibly and occasionally slumping over.

After he got up, the woman who was with him put one of the chairs back in its place.

He finally left the scene at around 4:24am.

The damage was eventually discovered by opening staff at 9am that day, after which the outlet remained open for business.

Checks by Mothership on Sep. 15 showed that Google Maps listed the store as open.

The incident was then reported to both Orchard Central's management, as well as the police on the same day.

The police confirmed that a report was lodged and investigations are ongoing.

Ami said that while the incident involved damage to the store's furniture or property, nothing was stolen as far as the store is aware.

She added that it is not the first time "unauthorised individuals" have entered the store after hours, but it is the first time one has damaged the store's furniture.

As such, she hopes he or someone who knows him will contact the store and take responsibility for the damage.

"He appears to be quite young, and we do not know what happened to him that night or what circumstances may have led to his behaviour. On a personal level, I do feel some sympathy for him.

At the same time, as a business, we cannot simply ignore the damage caused to our store and bear the cost ourselves."

Should the man come forward and make arrangements to reimburse the cost of the damaged property, the store said it is open to resolving the matter reasonably, without unnecessary publicity.

Asked about the the losses involved, she said the store is currently assessing the cost of repairs, but it is likely to be around S$1,000.

The store before. Photo from Henri Charpentier

The store after. Photo from Henri Charpentier