IPOH: A contractor here was allegedly handcuffed and beaten up by a client who claimed he was a policeman.

       The 58-year-old contractor said the incident took place near Taman Merdeka here on June 10 at about 8pm, believed to be due to a payment dispute for a major renovation project at the 25-year-old man's house in the residential area.

       "I was driving back home that day when he drove his car and stopped in front of mine.

       "He pulled me out of my car and pushed me into a drain," he told reporters at a press conference held by Ipoh Barat MCA coordinator Low Guo Nan here on Friday (June 17).

       "He then handcuffed me and told me that he was a police officer before hitting me on my head, arm and shoulder.

       "He also demanded that I pay him RM5,000 for not completing the renovation job," he added.

       He explained that he and his three workers were paid RM7,500 for the renovation work over two weeks and the man would also supply the materials.

       The works, he said, included tiling works, fixing the bathrooms, and also building a fish pond.

       "After two weeks, there was still work to be done and the materials bought by the man had also run out so I asked for more money to continue but he refused," he said.

       The contractor said that during the altercation with the man, a policeman had shown up and questioned why he was handcuffed.

       "The man removed the handcuffs, told the real policeman that he was also a cop and I was handcuffed again before being brought to a police station.

       "At the police station, they checked and that’s when I found out that the man was not a policeman as claimed," he said.

       "When I tried to lodge a report, the police officer who took my statement told me not to talk about the part where the man was pretending to be a policeman," he said, adding that he was also told to reimburse the man.

       He said he lodged another police report on June 12 after feeling some pain in the places where he was hit by the man.

       "I still remember that his sister and mother were also present and they just watched me getting beaten up.

       "In my second report, I listed down all my injuries and also mentioned that the man had handcuffed me and pretended to be a policeman," he added, adding that the man has a jacket with the words "Polis Keselamatan" at his house.

       Low said having contacted the police, he was told that the case was being investigated.

       "I hope the police will take this matter seriously since this is a case where a man had pretended to be a police officer and handcuffed the victim before beating him up.

       "The contractor told me that the handcuffs used by the man were similar to the ones used by the police," he said.

       "I've also checked the Internet and found that the handcuffs could be purchased online," he added.