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Despite paying over $11,350 to loan sharks over debts he never incurred, this Malaysian working in Singapore allegedly had his house set ablaze, Shin Min Daily News reported on Sunday (April 26).<\/p>\n
Speaking with the Chinese publication, Chen Jiaqiang (transliteration) who works as a carpenter in Singapore recalled how he was contacted by a loan shark through his phone in 2025.<\/p>\n
The loan shark had purportedly purchased information about Chen which included his phone number, pestering Chen to take a loan from them.<\/p>\n
Although he refused to borrow money, Chen said he received a phone call from the loan shark a week later, notifying him that $500 had been transferred to his account.<\/p>\n
Chen would need to pay $100 in interest every week due to this loan, the loan shark allegedly said.<\/p>\n
“I said I would return the money immediately,” Chen told Shin Min. “But he refused and stressed that I could only pay the interest and cannot return the principal sum.<\/p>\n
“In order to avoid trouble, I had no choice but to follow suit.”<\/p>\n
He paid $300 in interest to the loan shark and mutually agreed to end things with him after a $2,700 payment through PayNow, Chen said.<\/p>\n
That was not the end of it, however, and the loan shark sent over another $400 to Chen, demanding a payment of $2,900, China Press reported.<\/p>\n
Again, Chen was told to pay the interest purportedly owed to the loan shark.<\/p>\n
“My personal information was leaked and my child lives with me,” Chen said. “I considered the safety of my family and had no choice but to comply.”<\/p>\n
Smelling blood in the water, the loan sharks allegedly upped the ante with a forced transfer of $500 to Chen in March this year, asking for $5,000 in return.<\/p>\n
At the end of March, Chen transferred $450 in interest to the loan sharks and stopped making payment entirely.<\/p>\n
Abruptly, Chen’s home in Kangkar Pulai was attacked by loan sharks, with red paint splashed on his door.<\/p>\n
Security camera footage show a masked man dressed in black alighting from a car, splashing paint on his home and leaving a note before fleeing the scene.<\/p>\n
Then on April 21, a motorcyclist was caught on CCTV arriving at his house, setting a plastic bag containing fuel alight and throwing it into his home.<\/p>\n
Pressured into making payment, Chen subsequently transferred the $5,000 to the account that the loan shark had specified earlier.<\/p>\n
After doing so, however, the loan shark claimed Chen had transferred the amount to the wrong account, ordering him to transfer another $5,000 to a different account, Sinchew reported.<\/p>\n
“I really don’t have that kind of money,” Chen told Shin Min. “He set fire to my house last Tuesday (April 21).”<\/p>\n
Chen has since made a police report in both Singapore and Malaysia.<\/p>\n
AsiaOne has contacted the Singapore Police Force for more information.<\/p>\n
[[nid:733759]]<\/p>\n
khooyihang@asiaone.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n