KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 9 — Police have received 683 reports on unlicensed money lenders and arrested 801 “Ah Long” or loan sharks since January until August ths year.
Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (JSJK) director Datuk Mohd Kamarudin Md Din said the reports involved loans amounting to RM2.92 million.
He said the COVID-19 pandemic had caused many people to lose their jobs and source of income, forcing some of them to borrow money from loan sharks for their sustenance.
“JSJK always conducts monitoring and intelligencework to detect and identify syndicates of unlicensed money lenders,” he said in a statement today.
Meanwhile, Mohd Kamarudin said the department arrested 11 individuals, aged between 15 and 34, who included three women in an operation code-named “vulture” in Johor last Tuesday.
They are believed to be members of two loan shark syndicates known as the Ah Han and Ah Sing that target on traders, government and private sector employees, he said, adding that the syndicates wwre believed to be active since two years ago.
He said their modus operandi was to offer loans with interest of between 10 and 15 per cent through Facebook, WeChat and WhatsApp.
“When the borrowers failed to make their repayments, members of the syndicate will call and threaten them with violence,” he added.
