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A Malaysian singer has allegedly been harassed after borrowing RM17,000 from loan sharks to fund her music album
According to Berita Harian, the victim, identified only as Yee, said she turned to a WhatsApp service to finance the production of her album last month.
She claimed the loan was offered by an individual who purported to represent a licensed moneylending company. Although she agreed to borrow RM45,000, she said she only received about RM17,000.
Since the beginning of this month, Yee claimed the lender began demanding excessive interest payments, after which several other ah long groups contacted her and offered additional loans to settle the initial debt.
"They demanded that I pay a certain amount within a set period on the same day. They then started blackmailing me by threatening to double the original interest amount if I failed to make the payment.
"It's like a black hole of endless debt and I can't escape because they keep demanding more money every day," she said a press conference organised by MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Seri Michael Chong yesterday, 7 May.
Datuk Seri Michael Chong (second from left) and Yee (middle).
Image via Berita HarianYee said the loan sharks later began adding interest hourly
Although she has already paid back over RM20,300, exceeding the amount she originally received, the syndicates refused to release her from the debt and demanded RM49,400.
Chong said the scammers then allegedly threatened to kidnap her if she did not pay, reported The Star.
"They also uploaded social media posts shaming her and her family. Threats to kidnap were also made, as well as those to burn her house down," he said.
A police report was made soon after the threats, but the scammers found out about it.
"They said, 'You think you can lodge a report, that means you can run away?' They also said they had strong connections to a so-called Datuk Seri," Chong said, adding that he doubted the claim.
Chong said the victim approached his department to ensure there was a record showing she was a victim and not a scammer, as alleged in online posts by the syndicate.
"She just wants to earn an honest living. She just made a mistake when she dealt with this scammer," he said.
