Several fall prey to contractor scam

 

A couple said the ‘fake’ contractor offered to renovate their double-storey house for RM150,000 whereas others were asking for double the price. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA: Linda (not her real name) thought she found the perfect contractor to renovate her home when she came across the advertisement on Facebook.

The contractor, who identified himself as “Alson Liew”, which later turned out to be a fake identity, had offered his services for RM150,000 to renovate the entire double-storey house in Ampang.

The rate quoted was enticing enough for Linda and her husband, Andre (not his real name), to put down a RM32,000 deposit

“We were surprised by the rate he quoted us,” Linda told FMT, adding that other contractors were asking for RM300,000.

“But we thought it was okay since it was within our budget.”

Linda and Andre, a lawyer, only suspected something amiss when no work had been carried out a month after the deposit was paid.

Their suspicions were confirmed when they managed to track down the architect who Alson said he was working with.

“We really thought Alson could work within our budget, but we didn’t realise he was only interested in getting the contract so he could run away with our deposit,” Linda said.

The architect, who wished to remain anonymous, told the couple that Alson had promised to pay him RM14,000 for designs for two projects, one of which was Linda’s house. However, he said he was never paid the full sum.

The architect told FMT he was only paid a deposit of RM4,200 and never heard from Alson again.

Linda later discovered that she was not Alson’s only victim.

Two other house owners also fell prey to Alson after he quoted them a cheaper rate.

Adriana (not her real name), a senior manager with a telecommunications company, said she lost RM54,000 in a supposed RM82,000 renovation package.

Alson carried out minimal renovations, she said, but kept insisting on being paid for work until he pulled a disappearing act altogether.

Bernard (not his real name), a company marketing director, recounted losing RM25,000 after opting for a RM35,000 renovation package.

The promised renovations were left incomplete, he said, forcing him to hire another contractor to complete the job.

“Alson made it seem so real. He met us at his condo-cum-office in the Sungai Besi area.

“He was willing to go the extra mile to bring us to source for tiles from subcontractors,” he said.

Linda lodged a police report. However, she has yet to receive any updates on the case. - FMT