46-year-old arrested for loansharking activities

SINGAPORE - Police have arrested a 46-year-old man for his alleged loansharking activities. Preliminary investigations revealed the suspect to be a debtor-turned-runner.

The suspect had previously assisted the loanshark syndicates by procuring Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cards and Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) from other debtors. He also distributed flyers to promote illegal moneylending businesses.

It was also revealed that the suspect was involved in verifying borrowers' identities before issuing the illegal loans and had also placed debtor notes outside the residences of these borrowers.

Police followed up with the investigations and arrested the suspect and seized a mobile phone in connection to the case.

The suspect will be charged in State Court on Sept 24.

If found guilty of loanshark harassment, he may be punished with a jail term of up to five years, be fined between $5,000 and $50,000 and could be given between three to six strokes of the cane.

First time offenders found guilty of assisting a loanshark may be fined between $30,000 and $300,000, face a jail term of up to four years and could also be given up to six strokes of the cane.

ssandrea@sph.com.sg