90 nabbed for loansharking activities
Friday, Oct 23, 2015
SINGAPORE - Police have arrested 90 suspects, aged between 18 and 67, in an islandwide anti-loansharking operation that took place from Oct 19 to Oct 22. These 71 men and 19 women are suspected to be involved in loansharking activities, police said in a statement on Friday (Oct 23).
Police investigations revealed that one suspect is believed to have carried out a business of unlicensed moneylending, eleven suspects are believed to be runners who had assisted the loansharks in their businesses by carrying out Automated Teller Machine (ATM) transfers or procuring ATM cards for the syndicates' usage.
Another two suspects are believed to be harassers who had carried out acts of loanshark harassment by splashing paint and scrawling loanshark-related graffiti on walls.
The remaining 76 suspects are believed to have opened bank accounts and given away their ATM cards and Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) to loansharks to facilitate their unlicensed moneylending businesses. Investigations against all the suspects are ongoing.
First-time offenders found guilty of assisting in the business of unlicensed moneylending may be fined between $30,000 and $300,000, be imprisoned for a term of up to four years and may be caned up to six strokes.
First-time offenders found guilty of acting on behalf of an unlicensed moneylender, committing or attempting to commit any acts of harassment will be imprisoned up to five years, fined between $5,000 and $50,000, and caned between three and six strokes.
Those guilty of providing false contact information to obtain loans from loansharks may be imprisoned up to 12 months.
Under the National Registration Act, any person who is guilty of an offence of failing to report a change of address shall be liable on conviction to a fine of up to $5,000, or to imprisonment for a term of up to five years, or to both.
Police urge members of public to stay away from loansharking activities. The public can call the police at '999' or the X-Ah Long hotline at 1800-924-5664 if they suspect or know of anyone who could be involved in illegal loansharking activities.
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