Housebuyers lodge reports against lawyer

JOHOR BARU: At least five reports have been lodged against a lawyer by housebuyers who claim to have lost more than RM620,000.

Kluang OCPD Asst Comm Mohamed Laham said most of the victims were civil servants from state and federal agencies.

He added that police were investigating the case under Section 409 for criminal breach of trust.

He reminded house buyers to be always alert when making purchases and urged those with information to contact the police hotline at 07-221 2999.

Housing and Local Government Committee chairman Datuk Md Jais Sarday was shocked that a lawyer could cheat housebuyers. He said this was the first time such a case had surfaced and has directed his officers to look into the matter.

Md Jais also urged those applying for public housing to update their records and apply online.

“Please do not use any agents who promise houses for a fee,” he said, adding that those who want to find out more should contact the housing secretariat at Iskandar Puteri.

The state government has announced that it plans to build as many as 100,000 units under the Johor affordable housing scheme (RMMJ) by 2023.

Johor has three types of public housing schemes – the 750sq ft Perumahan Komuniti Johor (PKJ) Type A house priced at RM42,000, the 850sq ft PKJ Type B house with a RM80,000 price tag and the 1,000sq ft RMMJ house priced at RM150,000.