Couple’s house vandalised by loan shark in revenge attack

JOHOR BARU: A couple is facing distress after their house was vandalised with blue paint and then set on fire within a week in what is believed to be the deeds of illegal moneylenders, otherwise known as ah long.

A lorry driver who only wanted to be known as Chan said an unknown man splashed the paint at his front gate in Jalan Ketapang 5, Taman Rinting in Pasir Gudang, here at 3.22am on Jan 10.

“We believe that the same man and another person also threw a plastic bag filled with petrol over my gate and set fire to my front porch at 4.03am Wednesday.

“My 54-year-old wife was sleeping in the living room while our two teenage children were sleeping upstairs at the time. As I work in Singapore, I was not home.

“Luckily, a neighbour noticed the fire and called out. My wife rushed out and put out the fire using a garden hose,” the 58-year-old man said in a press conference organised by Johor Baru City Council Taman Rinting zone councillor Chan San San here yesterday.

He added that the closed-circuit television at his house captured footage of both incidents.

A note was also left behind after both incidents, stating that a person called Lim had borrowed money, and the hostile acts were meant to pressure him into repaying his debt, said Chan.

“I remembered that an old friend of mine named Lim used my home address in his MyKad for mailing purposes, as he was originally from Sabah.

“I agreed to it in 2005, as we worked together for the same company in Singapore back then,” he recounted.

Chan said he lost contact with Lim over the years, but managed to get in touch after the incidents.

“Turns out, Lim did ask for a loan of S$1,100 (RM3,862) from an ah long in Singapore through Facebook on Jan 7. He also gave them personal information such as his MyKad with my home address, his Singapore home address, and his work permit.

“Lim claimed that the ah long told him to repay an amount of S$15,000 (RM52,676) after he failed to answer his phone a few times,” said Chan, adding that he believed that this was the reason why his family was harassed.

Chan added that he and his wife were worried about their family’s safety and were planning to move out of the house soon.

When he called their phone number to explain that it was not him who borrowed money, the person on the other end scolded and threatened him further.

“Because of one person’s actions, my family is being threatened and my neighbours are also worried for their safety,” he said.

Seri Alam OCPD Supt Mohd Sohaimi Ishak confirmed that the reports were received.