She received not one, but three funeral wreaths.
A 60-year-old woman thought her nightmare was over, but one year later, it came back with a vengeance.
Madam Zhu, who works as a self-employed person, said her identity was stolen by a friend who used her NRIC to borrow money from loansharks. And now, she’s being harassed again.
This time, with not one, but three funeral wreaths delivered straight to her doorstep, with the chilling message:
“Zhu XX, rest in peace.”
Last year, she told Shin Min Daily News that her friend, 58-year-old Madam Lan, had asked for a photo of her IC under the pretext of signing her up as a health supplement member. But behind her back, Madam Lan allegedly used the photo to take out loans from illegal moneylenders, dragging her into a mess she didn’t ask for.
The two became friends because Madam Lan was a student at her husband’s music school in Jurong West. Madam Zhu’s husband is a vocal coach and runs the school.
Now, Madam Zhu says the harassment has returned.
She told Shin Min Daily News that she still gets threatening messages from the loansharks, even though she has nothing to do with the debt. She even gave them the contact number of Madam Lan’s sister, but they still kept targeting her.
On July 8 at around midnight, her son went to their music school and was shocked to see a funeral wreath placed at the door. The message on it, written in English, “Zhu XX, rest in peace.”
After checking their CCTV footage, they discovered the wreath had been delivered the night before, around 10pm. They immediately filed a police report.
But it didn’t end there.
Later that same day, the loansharks contacted Madam Zhu again. And she realised that not just one, but three wreaths had been sent out.
One was placed at the entrance of the music school. Another was found upstairs at a beauty salon, with her photo pasted on it. The third wreath, sent to the downstairs neighbour, had Madam Lan’s name and photo, with a curse aimed directly at her.
Although she said she isn’t afraid for her physical safety, Madam Zhu admitted the constant harassment is taking a toll.
“I will not pay the money. I didn’t borrow it. I just hope Madam Lan settles her debt quickly and stops dragging us down with her,” she said helplessly.
In response to media queries, the police confirmed a report has been lodged and investigations are ongoing.
