GEORGE TOWN: A “Datuk Seri” linked to an organised crime group called Gang 24 was among 20 individuals who were arrested by police for alleged involvement in illegal money lending.

       Penang police chief Comm Datuk Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain said police arrested 15 suspects, including the 59-year-old “Datuk Seri”, in the first raid on July 7 that began at 6am.

       “The group was believed to have illegally offered cash loans with interest rates of up to 50% per month to their customers, ” he said at the state police headquarters here yesterday.

       Comm Mohd Shuhaily said investigations showed that the “Datuk Seri” businessman is believed to be involved in other criminal activities such as gambling, prostitution, extortion and drugs.

       He said that in the second raid, police busted another loan shark group known as “Kumpulan Wong” and arrested four suspects, including their 25-year-old mastermind.

       In the last raid, a loan shark who worked alone was also arrested during the operation that included the state and Bukit Aman police commercial crime units.

       Comm Mohd Shuhaily said all the suspects aged between 21 and 59 were detained in various locations in George Town that ended at about 5pm the same day.

       He said during the operation, police also seized 11 luxury cars, 36 cellphones, 64 ATM cards, 22 sets of documents, RM24, 520 in cash, nine watches and seven pieces of jewellery.

       Police believed that these groups resorted to violence and threatened their victims who failed to pay back on time.

       “Among their targeted victims were shop owners, factory workers and those desperate for cash, especially during the pandemic, ” he said, adding that the groups used weapons to threaten their victims.

       The case will be investigated under Section 5(2) of the Moneylenders Act 1951 for carrying out money lending activities without a valid licence.