A case of mistaken identity saw three homeowners having their houses being burnt to the ground in Tasek Gelugor, Penang, after a loan shark set a house on fire over an unsettled debt.
Aside from the houses, several vehicles were also destroyed in the fire and police are currently probing the incident.
Warning signs
In a Facebook post by Mohamad Asrul, who was one of the affected houseowners, he wrote that he found traces of petrol and paint at his and a neighbour’s home on June 16.
He also found a bottle of leftover petrol and a note meant for another neighbour, where it contained the woman’s personal details and a warning that her house will be set on fire if she failed to settle the debt.
Asrul said he went to the Tasek Gelugor police station at 7am to make a report but was told to wait till 8am.
After meeting with the police officers, Asrul was told to return home and wait for them to come over and take photos of evidence. However, none of them allegedly turned up.
House set on fire
On Tuesday (June 24), Asrul was awakened by neighbours who came to shake his home’s gates and honk their car horns as his house was on fire.
Thanks to his neighbour’s early warning, he managed to escape by climbing over the fence. He later discovered that an explosive was thrown into one of his neighbour’s (who didn’t owe the debt) and it caused the fire to spread quickly.
While no one was hurt in the blaze, a total of three terrace houses, five cars, and four motorcycles were completely destroyed.
Needless to say, Asrul was distressed to see himself and two innocent neighbours lose their homes over someone’s else debt.
Meanwhile, Assistant Director of the Fire and Rescue Operations Division, Penang Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM), John Sagun Francis said the fire was extinguished at 5.59am and authorities are looking into the cause of the fire.
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