IPOH: A syndicate involved in illegal money lending that resorted to violence by breaking into and robbing the homes of defaulting borrowers has been busted by police here.
Perak police chief Datuk Azizi Mat Aris said three individuals, including a woman, were arrested in two separate raids recently following a report filed by a 20-year-old victim on Aug 8.
He said the victim reported being attacked by four individuals at his home in Ayer Tawar, Manjung, at 12.30pm on the same day.
He said the complainant was dining with his family and two friends when they heard a knock on the back door.
"Four individuals dressed in black, wearing helmets and face masks, stormed in when he went to check on who was at the door.
"One of the intruder who was armed with a stick struck the complainant on the back, while another took a knife from the dining table and slashed the man's back," he told reporters this after attending the monthly police assembly at the Perak contingent police headquarters here today.
Azizi said there was a struggle between the intruders and the victim's family as they tried to escape by retreating to a room.
He said the attack left the victim's sister, mother, and two friends to sustain wounds to their backs, arms, and legs.
"All the suspects fled after the victim's mother screamed for help...they escaped in a Toyota Alphard and a Perodua Myvi," he said, adding the intruders escaped with RM5,000 cash and three mobile phones.
Azizi said the victim, a tiles trader, was able to identify one of the intruders as a loan shark and admitted to having taken a loan of RM1,000.
Following the incident, a 23-year-old woman was arrested in Kampar on Aug 9, and two men, aged 33 and 20, were arrested in Ayer Tawar on Sunday.
Azizi said investigations revealed that the syndicate had been active since 2021, targeting the elderly and small time traders in rural areas of Perak, Pahang, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Penang.
The suspects have been remanded for six days until this Saturday and the case is being investigated under Section 394 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt during a robbery.