TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Seven people involved in a loan shark ring that used violence and intimidation to collect debts have been arrested in Hsinchu on the same day an in-debt 19-year-old was beaten to death in New Taipei.
On Thursday (Aug. 24) police said a man surnamed Cheng (鄭) was arrested along with six others involved in an illegal loan operation that charged an annual interest rate of up to 180%, per CNA. When debtors were unable to pay, police said members of the group used violence and intimidation to force people to repay, and would paint their houses with slogans that identified individuals who had not repaid loans.
Police investigations found at least four people paying 15% interest per month on loans of NT$200,000 (US$6,300). To identify where debtors lived, the group forged signatures of those who they lent money to and looked up their household registration records, and then used this information to harass individuals and their families.
Meanwhile, a 19-year-old male who was in debt for tens of thousands of dollars was beaten to death by a group of people in New Taipei’s Tamsui District on Thursday. Police have arrested three people, and are investigating if others were involved.
The deceased, surnamed Chen (陳), reportedly agreed to meet with his creditor on Thursday morning. When he arrived at the agreed place, three men in their early 20s who were waiting there beat Chen with blunt instruments.
After the three men realized that Chen was dying, they called an ambulance that took him to hospital, where he died.
Police said the deceased and the three suspects are unemployed. The case is being investigated as a homicide.
