Man eats uncollected McDonald's meal in Northpoint City after rejecting other offers of food

The New Paper
Nov 8, 2022

A man has become a familiar face to staff at the fast food establishments at Northpoint City in Yishun recently. 

No, he’s not a patron of the restaurants, but he's often spotted lurking outside the joints – either eating leftovers or rummaging through trash.

A reporter from 8world who visited the mall last Thursday evening (Nov 3) found the man, decked in a red polo shirt and carrying a backpack, standing outside McDonald's looking at diners.

A woman approached him and gave him a box of biscuits, which he threw away.

"I often see him looking for food in the rubbish bin, I thought he was quite pitiful, so I gave him the biscuits," the woman told the Chinese media outlet. 

A reporter then approached the middle-aged man and offered him $10 to buy food, but was rudely shooed away.

Later on, the man was seated in McDonalds, eating a meal. According to the cleaners, a customer ordered a meal but did not collect it, so the staff gave it to the man. 

"He's very pitiful, we should be kind [to him]," added the cleaner. 

According to 8world, McDonald's said that the staff at the Northpoint outlet have noticed the man rummaging through the dustbin for food.

"Out of concern for him, the staff have provided him with food and drinks," said a spokesman. 

When interviewed by 8world, a Long John Silver's employee at Northpoint said he has seen the man twice, around closing time. 

Some diners would order meals for him, and ask the staff to serve it to him. 

A KFC staff member, identified as Nora, said the man would sometimes kick up a fuss, but they would offer him food if he was quiet. 

"We've never spoken to him. We only serve him food, and he leaves after eating," she said. 

A cleaner at the mall’s food court, surnamed Huang, told 8world that the man used to disrupt diners at the food court a few months back. 

According to Huang, he would move tables and chairs around and pour water on the floor.

"We eventually called security to get him to leave. He hasn't appeared for a month," she said.