Debt-ridden retiree under siege from 18 loan sharks
They even charge him for paint
By Maureen Koh
November 11, 2006
HIS front door looks like a piece of abstract art.
Anyone would be struck by those bold splashes of red and green paint.
Grand total: $26,500
Total of interest payable a week: $5,650
But the owner of the flat, who wanted to be known only as Mr P Wong, gets no joy from it.
He cannot even live in the four-room HDB flat in the east.
Mr Wong is one of the most wanted men in Singapore - not by the cops, but by loan sharks.
His problem is not just the amount he owes, but the number of loan sharks who are after him.
He admitted to owing money to at least 18 loan sharks.
On 4 Sep when he defaulted on his payment, he was supposed to make a weekly payment of about $5,650.
His total debt then was $26,500.
But that sum is increasing even as you read this, due to the mounting interest. The loan sharks claim a whopping 20 per cent a week on arrears.
They also charge him for their costs - even for paint splashed on his door.
While Mr Wong has not dared to go home for two months, there are traces of his story all over the block.
Walls from the first to the ninth storey, where his flat is, have fresh coats of paint. And through that, his name, unit number and 'O $ Pay $' can still be seen faintly.
The 64-year-old retiree has sought refuge in a friend's flat.
His mother, 82, and his wife, 61, are staying with other relatives in a bid to escape the constant harassment.
Mr Wong has three children, all in their early 30s and married. He has three grandchildren - two of them infants - but he is unable to visit them as frequently as he wants to.
Each time his handphone rings, his heart pounds.
He became so desperate that he called The New Paper to warn others of the pitfalls of borrowing from unlicensed moneylenders.
In Mr Wong's own words, he is 'living in hell'.
And he conceded: 'I have only myself to blame.'
In his checked shirt and dark pants, the polite man didn't look like someone on the run.
He claimed he has a diploma in shipping and before he retired, used to earn about $5,000 a month.
Mr Wong's relationship with the illegal moneylenders began nine months ago when he got hooked on 4D and betting on horses.
He started by borrowing money from his friends, a couple of hundred at first.
As he was not working, he soon found he had no means of returning the money. Embarrassed by his friends' constant badgering, he claimed he went to three loan sharks, and each gave him an illegal loan of $1,000 to $1,500.
To cut potential losses in case somebody doesn't pay up, loan sharks these days lend only smaller sums, between $500 and $2,000.
Mr Wong continued to gamble, hoping to strike it rich and pay off his debts. Instead, he was getting deeper and deeper into debt.
'I found myself stuck when I could not make the weekly payment,' he said.
Soon, he was borrowing from one loanshark to pay another.
For the first six months, he was able to make the repayments. But once he defaulted, the figure snowballed.
Mr Wong claimed that because he had been prompt with his earlier payments, 'these loansharks considered me a good client'.
That was how he progressed from owing three loan sharks to seven. 'I'd receive calls from them, offering loans to tide over the payments,' he said.
Now, he was wanted by 18 of them.
And he believed he was able to go from one loan shark to another because they are acquainted with one another.
Unfortunately, these 'generous' offers have turned into a living nightmare for him.
He not only has to pay, but do it on time. 'Even if I bank in money, if it is done past the stipulated time, payment will be forfeited,' he said.
Which means the repayment schedule starts afresh the following week.
When he started skipping payments about two months ago, the loan sharks swung into action.
Mr Wong said: 'They'd call and threaten me on the phone, often hurling obscenities. They've doused my flat with paint and locked up the gate.'
The visits from the loansharks became so regular that he gave up trying to repair the damage.
NOT FIRST TIME
His family members soon found out about his financial woes.
'I had managed to keep it from them initially,' he said. 'My wife was livid, to the extent that she wanted to file for divorce.'
His children were also upset and disappointed when they found out. Especially as this was not his first brush with illegal moneylenders.
He was reluctant to provide details, but said the last time it happened was about four years ago.
'Then I had owed about $15,000 but with a regular job, my salary could sustain the monthly payments of about $3,000,' he said.
But after some time, he found he could not keep paying. He then made a police report.
Mr Wong claimed that he arranged a meeting with the loan sharks and they were nabbed. In this way, he managed to 'write off' the debts.
But that would not work this time.
Payments now are no longer collected in person. Instead, Mr Wong is given the numbers of various bank accounts into which the money has to be deposited.
He showed The New Paper several copies of the police reports he has made in the past two months.
On his own, he has also tried seeking out the loan sharks to negotiate monthly - instead of weekly - repayments, but they have turned him down.
And his wife, who is the joint owner of their flat, has rejected his suggestion to sell it.
'She's worried that I'll spend my share of the money, then revert to my old ways and repeat the mistake,' admitted Mr Wong.
Mr Wong is now looking for a job. Hours before he met this reporter, he had gone for an interview.
He said: 'The only way out now is to earn some income but age is against me. I'm willing to settle for less.'
'My biggest regret is that I can't even visit my children freely. While they may have forgiven me, I'm too ashamed to see them, especially their spouses,' he added.
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Tougher penalties
November 11, 2006
TO curb illegal moneylending activities, fines and imprisonment terms were enhanced in January this year.
First-time offenders found guilty of operating a business as an unlicensed moneylender may be fined up to $200,000, jailed a maximum of two years, or both.
The maximum jail term goes up to five years for repeat offenders.
Those found guilty of harassing or intimidating anyone in connection with loans by an unlicensed moneylender may be fined up to $40,000, jailed a maximum of three years, or both.
The maximum jail term goes up to six years for a second, or subsequent convictions.
Offenders are also liable to be caned if they have caused damage to any property during harassment.
http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/st...17179,00.html?
Where to get help
November 11, 2006
# National Council on Problem Gambling:
www.ncpg.org.sg
# Credit Counselling Singapore: 1800-225-5227, from Mondays to Fridays, 9am to 6pm
# Thye Hua Kwan Moral Society's problem-gambling hotline: 1800-X-GAMBLE/ 1800-9-426253
# Care Corner Counselling Centre problem-gambling hotline: 1800-6-668-668
# Community Addictions Management Programme at the Institute of Mental Health: 6389-2387/89, from Mondays to Fridays, 8.30am to 5.30pm
# SOS Befrienders' e-mail service:
pat@samaritans.org.sg
# National Family Service Centre: 1800-838-0100
# Samaritans of Singapore: 1800-221-4444
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They even charge him for paint 
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 2
should know those loan sharks are not good why still borrow from them. its the family that suffers. sad... 
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