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JOHOR BARU: An Ah Long union has been using social media to “give dozens of jobs” to people to scare off defaulters.
Jobs include splashing red paint, leaving warning notes, and in some cases even using flammable materials like thinner to burn down doors of houses or vehicles.
The union publishes the addresses of the defaulters and offers good money to those who want to do the work.
Security sources said that in all cases, criminals never meet loan sharks in person, since everything is done online.
According to sources, every time the person accepting the job throws paint, puts up a warning notice or sets fire to the victim’s house, he is paid up to RM 1,000.
The person accepting the job must show proof that the victim’s home or property has been “hit” through video or photos before collecting payment.
The police discovered this modus operandi from a recent case of loan sharking in Muar, where a businessman’s house was set on fire and sprayed with paint in the early hours of the morning while the family slept.
Based on CCTV footage, the police managed to track down the vehicle used in the incident and make a series of arrests in Johor, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.
The union, which has been in existence for at least a year, offers loans of up to S $ 2,000 (RM6,000) through social media.
It is known that payments can be deposited in Malaysia or Singapore, but the interest rate can go up to 15% to 20% per month.
Once the borrower does not pay, they will first harass him before a “hit at home” job is posted for him to pay.
Meanwhile, the head of the Pulai MCA Office of Complaints and Public Services, Jimmy Tan Sin Meng, who during a press conference last week showed a video about loan sharks harassing an elderly couple, praised the police in Johor for criticizing usurers.
He noted that loan sharks were getting bolder to the point of setting house doors on fire.
“In one case, the victims did not even borrow money, but they are being harassed.
“Even her son, who is in Singapore, is sent warning videos and threats,” Tan added.
In that case, a woman known as Madame Koh said she feared for the safety of her elderly husband, her two young grandchildren and her daughter-in-law after their house was sprayed with paint and their front door burned down.
The 65-year-old woman believed the loan sharks were after her 60-year-old sister.
His son works in Singapore as a chef and hasn’t been back here since March due to Covid-19 movement restrictions.
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