Pressing issue: (From left) Yuen, Tan and the department’s deputy chief Pauline Phoon, showing the police report and photos of the red paint splashed by the loan sharks, at a press conference in Ipoh.
IPOH: Hairstylist Tan Kui Fong and her family are living in fear after their home in Pusing, Perak, was targeted by loan sharks.
The 35-year-old, who works in Singapore, said loan sharks had set fires in front of the house last month and splashed red paint to intimidate them.
“We are experiencing sleepless nights and mental torture. We are on edge at all times, not knowing what will happen to us,” she said at a press conference held by Perak MCA Public Services and Complaints Department chief Charles Yuen here yesterday.
“I just hope the loan sharks will stop harassing us, especially my family members who are innocent,” she added.
Tan said she had borrowed money from loan sharks to pay off some debt at the end of last year.“I lost about S$10,000 (RM34,721) to a cryptocurrency investment scheme and found a moneylending advertisement on Instagram, which I thought was legit.
“It had an interest-free five-day loan offer and I borrowed S$500 (RM1,735).
“Within a week, I repaid the loan but a week later, the loan shark deposited S$800 (RM2,777) into my account.
“I told them I didn’t need the money and tried to return it.
“They then insisted that I pay S$1,000 (RM3,472) and threatened me if I did not do so,” Tan said, adding that she relented as she was scared.
“They continued asking for payments of S$200 (RM693) every week until I could no longer do so last month. That’s when they threatened my family in Pusing.
“I have paid the loan sharks a total of S$19,200 (RM66,671),” said Tan.
Last month, she filed police reports in Batu Gajah and Singapore.
“I have stopped responding to their threats and they have also stopped communicating with me. But I still fear they will look for me in Singapore or my family,” Tan said.
She also said she had exhausted all of her savings and had to borrow money from her family in order to survive.
“I still owe my landlord in Singapore about S$2,800 (RM9,722). At times, I do not even have money to buy food,” she said.
Yuen said Tan had submitted the CCTV recording of the fire incident to the police and urged the authorities to speed up investigations.
“I hope people will be more cautious when they come across moneylending advertisements on social media.
“I also hope that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission can do more against these advertisements.
“If sensitive content can be taken down, why can’t these advertisements?” Yuen said.
