A 75-year-old woman who just bought and moved into a Housing and Development Board flat in Sengkang, Singapore, with her 38-year-old son and a domestic worker has complained of intimidation by loan sharks attempting to collect debts from the former landlord.
The affected female landlord, who wished to remain anonymous, told Lianhe Wanbao that she bought the flat in Block 308C on Anchorvale Road from an Indian woman three months ago.
On the morning of August 5, when her domestic worker went out to water plants, she was shocked to find the front door slightly burnt and notes on the wall scribbled in red paint demanding money. She notified the female employer immediately.
The employer said it was lucky that no-one was injured.
A 50-year-old neighbor surnamed Cai reported that his family had been intimated by loan sharks as well. Two days before the alleged arson he found his door chained with a note, advising him to pay the debts for his neighbor.
On Saturday, police arrested a 25-year-old man suspected of doing the arson attack on the woman’s door.
According to Singapore’s law on moneylenders, first offenders found guilty of assisting unlicensed moneylending can be jailed for up to five years and made to pay a fine from S$5,000 to $50,000. They could also face up to six strokes of the cane.