“We know where you live”: How a RM1,000 Ah Long loan put family in danger

SHAH ALAM – The first message came on a quiet Monday evening.

“We know where you live. If your brother doesn’t pay, you and your father are next.”

For Lina (not her real name), what started as a typical day quickly descended into a spiral of fear and anxiety.

The text came from an unknown number. The tone was cold, threatening and unmistakably from someone claiming to be an Ah Long or illegal loan shark.

She hadn’t borrowed any money. But someone close to her had.

“My brother borrowed RM1,000. Just RM1,000, which he claimed he had paid back.

“Now, every single day, my father and I get messages and sometimes WhatsApp calls. In the messages, they say they’ll send someone to kill us or throw Molotov cocktails at our house if he doesn’t pay.

“I never even responded, never picked up, but the threats just keep coming,” she told Sinar Daily recently.

Lina, in her 30s, said the threats began almost immediately after her estranged brother took the loan.

Already distant from the family, his actions have not only put them in danger but torn what little relationship remained.

“Things were never good between us, but this was the final straw. He didn’t even warn us. He just acted nonchalant and left us to deal with this mess,” she said.

The messages have become more specific, more violent. At one point, she received graphic threats that detailed what would happen to her and her father if the debt remained unpaid.

“They told me they’d throw paint on our house, that we’d be beaten, or worse, killed. I don’t even know if it’s real or just scare tactics. But how do you live normally with messages like that hanging over you?”

Despite ignoring the unknown calls and refusing to reply to the texts, the harassment hasn't stopped.

Lina described the unnerving sensation of constantly looking over her shoulder whenever she leaves the house.

“Even when nothing happens, I’m on edge. Every time a motorbike passes by slowly, I wonder if they’re coming for me.”

Lina and her father have since lodged separate police reports the police but investigation officers’ attempts to call back the number have failed.

“When we tried calling through WhatsApp, it rang. But on a normal line, no one picked up,” she said.

The authorities have begun looking into the matter, but Lina says they’re limited by the lack of information and the evasive nature of these digital loan sharks.

Cases like Lina’s are becoming increasingly common. Loan sharks have moved online, using encrypted messaging apps and untraceable numbers to harass victims and their families.

Often, as in this case, it’s not even the borrower who faces the brunt of the threats – it’s their loved ones.

“I didn’t borrow a single sen. But I’m the one who gets threatened. How is that fair? I just want this to stop. I want to feel safe again,” she said.

Meanwhile, Sepang district police Commercial Crime Investigation Department head Assistant Superintendent Muhammad Mahesh Kumar Risya Abdullah said this tactic is common among online loan sharks who use digital platforms to threaten and manipulate victims while staying anonymous.

“Ah Longs today never meet their victims in person. They operate from the shadows, while intermediaries handle all communications.

“In many cases, WhatsApp Calls work, but regular calls don’t. These numbers function only on internet platforms or the perpetrators operate from abroad, making them hard to trace,” he explained.

He warned that such syndicates not only target borrowers but also extend their threats to family members.

“They know how to manipulate emotions and family ties. If they can’t directly pressure the borrower, they’ll turn to their loved ones. It’s cyber extortion and emotional blackmail,” he said.

Mahesh revealed that many victims fail to document or provide critical details, such as phone numbers, bank account numbers or transaction receipts, making investigations harder.

At times, these syndicates also manipulate desperate individuals into creating or surrendering bank accounts (commonly referred to as mule accounts), which are then used for illegal transactions. This tactic makes it difficult for law enforcement to trace and apprehend the real masterminds behind the scams.