Thesun 2009-06-30 Page07 Loanshark Targets Neighbour Of Defaulter

theSun

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| TUESDAY JUNE 30 2009

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WORLD FAMOUS MELT IN YOUR MOUTH DOUGHNUTS

Loanshark targets neighbour of defaulter by Tim Leonard [email protected]

KUALA LUMPUR: The next time your neighbour borrows money from loansharks, beware. These heartless loansharks might end up throwing red paint in your house as well, because they want you to “pressure” your neighbour to repay them. Cheras police believe this is a new scare tactic used by loan sharks in a bid to add pressure to loan defaulters following an incident on June 22. In the incident at 11.30pm in Taman Cheras Perdana, a 39-yearold businessman found his porch and Mercedes Benz splattered with red paint. The victim, who wanted to be identified only as Theve, said his neighbour had borrowed some money from loansharks and had not returned home for several days. “First, the loansharks threw some oil into my neighbour’s empty house on June 21. The next day, they threw red paint on my neighbour’s porch and purposely threw some into my house as well,” Theve told theSun.

He added that the paint also splashed on his car and he was now worried that the loan sharks might haunt him just because his neighbour borrowed money. Theve lodged a report with the Cheras Batu 9 police station on June 23. A Cheras police spokesman, who confirmed the report, said police were working to track down the loansharks. The spokesman also said police did not rule out the possibility that this was a new scare tactic used by loansharks to force loan defaulters to pay up. “ B y scaring the neighbours, these loansharks hope the neighbours will join in and force the loan defaulters to pay,” he

said. On May 27, police rescued three men men who were locked up and treated like dogs by loan sharks in Taman Bukit Serdang, Serdang. The men had their neck and legs chained to the walls of an unoccupied shoplot because of unpaid debts ranging from RM1,500 to RM4,000. Following the incident, police and the government launched an all-out war against loan sharks and arrested several suspects.

NOW OPEN ! AT BERJAYA TIMES SQUARE

No sir, marks-fixing ‘is acceptable’ by Tan Yi Liang [email protected]

Theve’s car splattered with blotches of red paint while his neighbour’s house (right) takes the brunt of the loanshark’s mischief.

SHARIL AMIN/THE SUN

PETALING JAYA: A former Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (Usim) law lecturer says Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin has contradicted his ministry’s stand on “marks-fixing”. “He says marks-fixing by universities is unacceptable and should be investigated. I have a letter from the ministry saying otherwise,” said Yasmin Noor, who had alleged that she was victimised and pressured to quit after refusing to pass students who had failed her course. On Thursday, at the opening of the annual National Higher Education Conference, Khaled said: “I think any attempt to fix marks is unacceptable. We cannot accept such things because it is against professionalism. “We hope, if there is any complaint over such matters, an investigation will be conducted by the relevant university.” Yasmin said: “I complained to the ministry after I was victimised in June 2008 but the ministry only gave its reply in February 2009. “The ministry had responded in favour of Usim, despite me clearly detailing

the harassment in Usim. “I had complained that a senior shouted at me, accusing me of being a failure and that I should leave as I am not suitable to teach in Usim.” Yasmin, who was with USIM’s law faculty, said she only received a letter from the ministry in February which upheld the university’s decision on altering and giving passing grades to her failed students. The letter states: “The Usim Senate acted correctly in its capacity as the highest authority in academic affairs and has the right to request that a student’s marks be reassessed. There was no wrongdoing on the part of USIM.” “I, therefore, challenge the minister’s statement and stand on marks-fixing being unacceptable. I also never got to meet the person whom I complained to in the first place, Department of Higher Education director-general Datuk Radin Umar, what more the minister. “I was also not notified that the matter was being investigated prior to my resignation on Dec 18, 2008. “Why did they not tell me about this before I resigned, otherwise I would not have quit. Why didn’t they tell me about the letter until February 2009,” she asked.