Salesman hounded by Ah Long despite paying off his debt

KUALA LUMPUR: A salesman cannot shake debt collectors off his back even though he claims to have cleared his dues.

Ng Hock Heng, 28, had originally borrowed RM11,000 from a money lender known as Marcus early last year for his business.

He claimed to have paid that debt plus interest by May, giving Marcus a total of RM15,100.

However, loan sharks kept coming back to haunt him.

In October last year, Ng received a call from a man known as CK, demanding that he pay his debt.

Ng explained to CK that he had already paid Marcus, showing the transaction receipts as proof.

But CK said Marcus had stopped working for him and that the money never came.

Efforts to contact Marcus to clarify the issue were fruitless, and Ng, who insisted that he had already settled the debt, refused to pay CK anything.

Not long after that, loan sharks threw paint at his house in Batu Caves. This happened three more times.

In May this year, Ng received another call from a man called Tony, who claimed to be collecting the same debt. Again, Ng refused to pay.

This time, the money lenders went after his business partner in Selayang Jaya and paint was thrown at the partner’s house onWednesday.

Ng said he had made four police reports over the paint throwing, while his partner lodged one as well.

His case was brought to light by MCA public services and complaints department chief Datuk Seri Michael Chong in a press conference yesterday.

Chong said that loan sharks were becoming more unreasonable.

“Even though it’s settled, they still demand more,” he said.

Chong added that he received 251 cases involving loan sharks, with monies estimated at RM27mil.