2 suspects arrested for alleged involvement in loanshark activities
AsiaOne Thursday, Mar 12, 2015
SINGAPORE - Two suspects have been arrested for their alleged involvement in two separate cases of loansharking activities.
In the first case that had occurred on Mar 11 at about 11.20am, a 27-year-old suspect was arrested in Raffles Place by Jurong Police Division officers.
He is suspected to be a former debtor turned runner, who had assisted loanshark syndicates by making debtors open bank accounts and procuring their Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cards with Personal Identification Numbers (PINs).
The suspect then used the stolen ATM cards to carry out ATM transactions related to unlicensed moneylending business. Two ATM cards, one mobile phone and $500 worth were seized from him upon arrest.
Later on that same day, Jurong Police Division officers arrested another suspect at about 1.30pm.
The suspect, 20, was nabbed at Block 288E Bukit Batok Street 25 for his alleged involvement in at least six cases of loanshark harassment.
Through investigations, he was believed to have carried out island-wide loansharking harassment acts in Marsiling, Woodlands, Yishun, Hougang and Bukit Panjang. He had allegedly splashed paint at the main doors of debtors' houses, padlocked main gates with bicycle locks and even scrawled graffiti on walls.
Both suspects will be charged on March 13. If convicted, first-time offenders guilty of assisting unlicensed moneylending businesses may face a fine of at least $30,000, may be imprisoned for at least four years and may be liable to at least six strokes of the cane.
First-time offenders convicted of loanshark harrassment will be punished with a jail term of up to 5 years and face a fine of at least $5,000 and may also be liable to at least three strokes of the cane.
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