Debt collectors’ new scare tactic

> Loan defaulters issued fake court letters, defamed on social media

PETALING JAYA: To recover old debts, unscrupulous debt collectors are turning to a new tactic of instilling fear in loan defaulters by issuing fake court letters and slandering them on social media sites such as Facebook.

theSun learnt of this following a letter supposedly from a debt collection company here that went viral on social media.

The letter addressed to a woman in Kota Kinabalu had stated that a warrant of arrest had been issued against her and will be served on her for failing to meet the demands of the company’s client and she would have to appear in court.

Numerous attempts by theSun to contact two telephone numbers stated in the letter for clarification were futile as they went unanswered.

K. A. Ramu, a senior lawyer who was shown the letter, was of the opinion that the document was not authentic and had no legality.

He said any such notice should come from a law firm and those who receive such letters should carry out checks for the existence of such a company and also with the Bar Council before reporting the matter to the relevant authorities.

He said they may also check with the courts to verify if the notice is fake.

MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Seri Michael Chong, who also looked at the letter and consulted his panel of lawyers, said it was a scam.

He said to obtain an arrest warrant and execute it over a civil matter is a long process and not a simple procedure.

He said crooked debt-collectors often come up with a new ruse in recovering bad debts.