By The SUN
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| The alleged loanshark met one of the Filipinas in Lohas Park to give her a loan and collect her passport |
Two of the nine Filipinas whose passports were recovered from a local female resident suspected of loansharking activities in Tseung Kwan O went to the Consulate today, Nov 2, to report that they were among the victims of the woman.
This follows a confirmation from the police that they nabbed
a 45-year-old local woman on suspicion of carrying on an unlicensed money
lending business from her home in
Consul Paulo Saret, head of the assistance to nationals section, said the two domestic helpers went to ATN to apply for new passports after admitting they gave their current ones to the suspect who lent them money.
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The Consulate’s policy is that Filipinos who use their passports as loan collateral will be asked to execute an affidavit of undertaking not to re-offend before they are allowed to apply for a new passport.
“They admitted that they used their passports to borrow money, so, we’ll issue them a new passport but we’ll put them on our watchlist,” Saret said.
If they commit the same offence in future, they will no longer be issued passports.
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One of the victims declined to narrate how she lost her passport to the suspected loanshark. She said she was ashamed and did not want people to know that she had borrowed money from the suspect.
Another one was said to have been introduced to the local woman by a mutual friend. She had asked for a loan of $4,000 but was only given $3,400 with the $600 being collected upfront as interest. She was told to pay the same amount as monthly interest until she could pay the full $4,000 back.
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| Saret warns those who swap their passports for loans will be put on watchlist |
Despite getting the reports from the two workers, Saret said he had not been officially informed by the police about new loansharking syndicates that victimize Filipinos.
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It appears the Chinese woman who was arrested in Tseung Kwan on Oct 26 was a “freelance” operator who conducted her illegal lending business alone, he said.
Saret said the Consulate has been warning the migrant workers time and again to avoid borrowing from unlicensed lenders as these could get them into trouble.
He said he was wondering why they keep patronizing and falling prey to loansharks despite the PCG’s warnings.
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Police told The SUN nine Philippine passports and $35,000 cash
were seized by officers who raided the woman’s flat in
The police acted after receiving complaints about the woman charging very high interest rates for loans a little as $3,400.
Police said the suspect was released on bail but would have to report to them later this month.
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