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http://thestar.com.m...=...&sec=nation


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Friday December 30, 2011

Woman loses car to conman

By P. ARUNA
aruna@thestar.com.my


KUALA LUMPUR: A real estate agent regrets the day she opted for a “hassle-free� way to sell her Smart car.

Not only did she lose her car to a conman, Santha Devi Govindaraj, 52, has to continue paying the RM950 monthly instalments and still owes the bank another RM43,000 for a car she no longer owns.

Santha Devi hired a private investigator to track down the man after realising that she was conned when he stopped answering her calls,
Santha’s cause: Santha with her son Navin Jayaram (right) and Nordin, who was also a victim of the same conman.

“We managed to track him down and handed him over to the police, but they released him after a week, saying that it was not a criminal offence,� said Santha Devi during a press conference at Wisma MCA here yesterday.

The man had contacted Santha Devi after she placed an advertisement in the newspapers to sell her car in June.

He claimed that he had a buyer and even promised to make the necessary arrangements with a bank to secure a loan for her son to buy another car.

He then disappeared with the car and another RM300 in “service charge�.

“I am now paying for a car that I no longer have,� said Santha Devi who was in for another shock when she tried contacting him through the address stated on his business card.

She discovered that she was among several victims who had tried to locate him at the same address.

Insurance agent Nordin Sayuti, 44, said Santha Devi was one of seven people who had come to his company in search of the man over the past year.

“He used the name and address of my company to cheat them,� said Nordin, adding that the man had once purchased insurance from him.

MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Michael Chong warned Malaysians to be more careful when selling their vehicles, especially when it was still bound to a hire purchase agreement.

He said the department had received 25 similar cases since last year.

“Deal with only reputable companies. Get an official receipt and get the necessary approval from the bank before handing over your car,� he said, adding that he would contact the Bukit Aman Commercial Crime chief and request him to look into the case.

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