http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,201884,00.html?
Loan sharks' new tactic? Owners ask:
Why deface our cars when we don't owe money?
May 14, 2009
MISTAKEN IDENTITY? One of the vandalised BMWs. PICTURES: LIANHE WANBAO
YOU have seen the 'O$P$' sign in lifts, on letter boxes, along the corridors, at staircase landings and even on the doors of people's homes.
But what about cars?
A Hyundai Tuscani was found defaced with 'O$P$' (loan sharks' abbreviation of 'owe money, pay money') on Friday.
Mr Daniel Tang, 38, a project director, had parked his three-year-old car at the Block 98A multi-storey carpark in Aljunied Crescent on 27 Apr.
He has been parking his car there since he and his wife moved into nearby Block 110 last year.
Mr Chew reported the vandalism to the police.
He then left for Malaysia to work on a project and returned about 10 days later on 7 May. The next evening, the couple had a shock when they saw the car.
Said Mr Tang: 'I'd just got back from Malaysia, so my wife and I were hoping to go out for a nice dinner.'
Spray-painted on the right side of his Hyundai were 'O$P$' and an address of a unit in nearby Block 109.
The paint at the rear end of the car, next to the right tail-light, was also chipped.
Mr Tang called the police and, while waiting for them to arrive, looked up the Block 109 address.
The resident, Madam Ting Ah Boo, 72, admitted that her youngest son had borrowed from loan sharks. After she told him that she had lost contact with her son, Mr Tang decided to let the matter rest.
Shaking his head, he told The New Paper: 'I did nothing wrong. I didn't borrow money from loan sharks, I haven't offended anyone, but I'm the one paying.'
Repainting the car cost him $800, said Mr Tang, who posted his experience on citizen journalism website Stomp.
Mr Tang said with a sigh: 'All I can say is, why me? Why must loan sharks do this to innocent people?'
His was not the only car vandalised by loan sharks.
Two weeks ago, around the time that Mr Tang left for Malaysia, two BMWs were found separately with 'O$P$' spray-painted on their sides.
Both owners insisted they hadn't borrowed from loan sharks.
Property agent Chew Wei Min, 70, realised that his BMW had been defaced on 28 Apr.
Mr Chew, who has lived at Hougang Street 31, Block375 for nine years, had parked his car at the nearby Block 373A multi-storey carpark on 26 Apr.
Spray-painted on his grey BMW's left side were 'O$P$' and a handphone number.
Mr Chew told The New Paper: 'At first, I thought it was the reflection from the car parked next to mine.
'But when I got closer, I realised that my car had been vandalised.'
He reported the incident to the police that evening.
Acting on their advice, he didn't call the number sprayed on his car.
It took him a whole day to scrub off the paint.
The next day, another BMW was found vandalised with 'O$P$' and the same Block 109 address as on Mr Tang's car. This BMW was parked behind Block 134, Geylang East Avenue 1, a short walk from Block 109, Aljunied Crescent.
The BMW was parked there in the afternoon of 29Apr, reported Lianhe Wanbao. When the owner returned a while later, she realised it had been vandalised.
Expensive
A check with five motor workshops indicated that repainting both the front and back doors of a BMW costs about $500.
It costs about $2,000 to repaint the whole car.
When The New Paper visited the Block 109 flat, there were signs that the elderly couple living there had been targetted by loan sharks - the areas around the flat had a fresh coat of paint.
Madam Ting and her husband, Mr Yeo Ser Ghim, 70, a part-time odd job worker, have lived there for more than 30 years.
The youngest of their four sons, 38, got married and moved out eight years ago. He has since divorced.
That was all they had heard of him till March this year, when loan sharks came knocking.
The couple knew he loved to gamble, but they hadn't counted on being harassed because of his debts.
They claimed they have no way of tracking down their wayward son. The loan sharks come twice a week in the wee hours of the morning, said Madam Ting.
They splashed paint on the couple's door as well as those of their neighbours. They even locked the couple in the flat by padlocking their grille.
And now, to everyone's shock, they have taken to defacing cars around the neighbourhood.
Determined to catch the loan sharks, the Yeos have installed closed-circuit television cameras. According to Madam Ting, they have captured footage of the loan sharks cutting the CCTV's wires.
Said Madam Ting: 'Why are these loan sharks hounding old people like us? Don't they have a conscience?
'Why are they attacking people who don't actually owe them money?'
The police said that investigations are ongoing.
Han Yongming, newsroom intern
Loan sharks' new tactic? Owners ask:
Why deface our cars when we don't owe money?
May 14, 2009
MISTAKEN IDENTITY? One of the vandalised BMWs. PICTURES: LIANHE WANBAO
YOU have seen the 'O$P$' sign in lifts, on letter boxes, along the corridors, at staircase landings and even on the doors of people's homes.
But what about cars?
A Hyundai Tuscani was found defaced with 'O$P$' (loan sharks' abbreviation of 'owe money, pay money') on Friday.
Mr Daniel Tang, 38, a project director, had parked his three-year-old car at the Block 98A multi-storey carpark in Aljunied Crescent on 27 Apr.
He has been parking his car there since he and his wife moved into nearby Block 110 last year.
Mr Chew reported the vandalism to the police.
He then left for Malaysia to work on a project and returned about 10 days later on 7 May. The next evening, the couple had a shock when they saw the car.
Said Mr Tang: 'I'd just got back from Malaysia, so my wife and I were hoping to go out for a nice dinner.'
Spray-painted on the right side of his Hyundai were 'O$P$' and an address of a unit in nearby Block 109.
The paint at the rear end of the car, next to the right tail-light, was also chipped.
Mr Tang called the police and, while waiting for them to arrive, looked up the Block 109 address.
The resident, Madam Ting Ah Boo, 72, admitted that her youngest son had borrowed from loan sharks. After she told him that she had lost contact with her son, Mr Tang decided to let the matter rest.
Shaking his head, he told The New Paper: 'I did nothing wrong. I didn't borrow money from loan sharks, I haven't offended anyone, but I'm the one paying.'
Repainting the car cost him $800, said Mr Tang, who posted his experience on citizen journalism website Stomp.
Mr Tang said with a sigh: 'All I can say is, why me? Why must loan sharks do this to innocent people?'
His was not the only car vandalised by loan sharks.
Two weeks ago, around the time that Mr Tang left for Malaysia, two BMWs were found separately with 'O$P$' spray-painted on their sides.
Both owners insisted they hadn't borrowed from loan sharks.
Property agent Chew Wei Min, 70, realised that his BMW had been defaced on 28 Apr.
Mr Chew, who has lived at Hougang Street 31, Block375 for nine years, had parked his car at the nearby Block 373A multi-storey carpark on 26 Apr.
Spray-painted on his grey BMW's left side were 'O$P$' and a handphone number.
Mr Chew told The New Paper: 'At first, I thought it was the reflection from the car parked next to mine.
'But when I got closer, I realised that my car had been vandalised.'
He reported the incident to the police that evening.
Acting on their advice, he didn't call the number sprayed on his car.
It took him a whole day to scrub off the paint.
The next day, another BMW was found vandalised with 'O$P$' and the same Block 109 address as on Mr Tang's car. This BMW was parked behind Block 134, Geylang East Avenue 1, a short walk from Block 109, Aljunied Crescent.
The BMW was parked there in the afternoon of 29Apr, reported Lianhe Wanbao. When the owner returned a while later, she realised it had been vandalised.
Expensive
A check with five motor workshops indicated that repainting both the front and back doors of a BMW costs about $500.
It costs about $2,000 to repaint the whole car.
When The New Paper visited the Block 109 flat, there were signs that the elderly couple living there had been targetted by loan sharks - the areas around the flat had a fresh coat of paint.
Madam Ting and her husband, Mr Yeo Ser Ghim, 70, a part-time odd job worker, have lived there for more than 30 years.
The youngest of their four sons, 38, got married and moved out eight years ago. He has since divorced.
That was all they had heard of him till March this year, when loan sharks came knocking.
The couple knew he loved to gamble, but they hadn't counted on being harassed because of his debts.
They claimed they have no way of tracking down their wayward son. The loan sharks come twice a week in the wee hours of the morning, said Madam Ting.
They splashed paint on the couple's door as well as those of their neighbours. They even locked the couple in the flat by padlocking their grille.
And now, to everyone's shock, they have taken to defacing cars around the neighbourhood.
Determined to catch the loan sharks, the Yeos have installed closed-circuit television cameras. According to Madam Ting, they have captured footage of the loan sharks cutting the CCTV's wires.
Said Madam Ting: 'Why are these loan sharks hounding old people like us? Don't they have a conscience?
'Why are they attacking people who don't actually owe them money?'
The police said that investigations are ongoing.
Han Yongming, newsroom intern
