SIBU: What began as a desperate attempt by parents to rescue their son from an online loan trap ended in devastating financial losses after the family.
The victims were cheated of more than RM100,000 in just over a month by an alleged fraudulent loan syndicate.
The ordeal started when the young man responded to a loan advertisement on social media, which was disguised as an offer from a legitimate financing company.
Unaware that he was dealing with scammers, the inexperienced youth initially applied for a RM1,000 loan. Within a month, however, the syndicate manipulated the situation until the supposed debt ballooned to RM30,000 through a series of fabricated charges and escalating demands.
Shortly after, the syndicate involved began to impose various charges and additional fees that were supposedly required to approve and process the loan.
When the victim failed to meet the demands, the syndicate started issuing threats, including warning that the family’s house would be sprayed with paint and burned down.
The syndicate also threatened to throw drugs into the victim’s home to trap the family.
The pressure and fear caused the victim’s parents to decide to pay the syndicate’s demands by borrowing money from friends and relatives.
However, the syndicate did not stop their demands.
The continuous threats also caused the victim and his parents to experience serious emotional stress that affected their mental well-being.
Eventually, in desperation, the family sought help from the Sarawak National Consumer Action Council (MTPN) on Wednesday evening (Mar 11).
MTPN Sarawak president Lucas Lau later accompanied the victim to lodge a police report to enable authorities to investigate the case.
He described the syndicate’s actions as not only exploitative and inhumane, but also clear violations of the law.
“This case can be investigated under the Moneylenders Act 1951 in addition to Section 506 of the Penal Code for criminal intimidation and Section 420 of the Penal Code for fraud,” he said.
Lau also reminded the public not to easily believe in easy loan offers advertised on social media.
“If you are already caught, do not continue to pay because their demands will never end. Stop communication, keep all evidence of conversations and transactions and immediately file a report with the authorities,” he said.
The case is a reminder to the public to be more careful with dubious online loan offers because it can have adverse effects not only on individuals, but also on entire families.
