Businessman duped by fogging scam

Tuesday March 8, 2011

By CHRISTINA LOW
christinalow@thestar.com.my

CONMEN claiming to be from pest control companies are back at their old tricks.

Businessman Ong Kah Yong, who lives in Taman Paramount, Petaling Jaya, fell victim to the scam last month when three men visited his house offering him a deal which sounded harmless at the beginning.

“They told me that Paramount was a dengue-prone area and they are representing the MBPJ (Petaling Jaya City Council) in fogging in the area.

“The men then asked me to write my name and address on a form and then sign it for record purposes,” said Ong.

Victim of scam: The form which Ong filled for the pest control company.
He said the trio were in uniform and even had name tags with their photos on it.

After signing the form, the men then asked him to pay a RM50 fee as fogging service for a year.

“Since it was a small amount I did not bother arguing with them,” said Ong who only realised the service may was a scam when he tried calling the phone number on the form but all calls went unanswered.

He then decided to bring the matter up to Kampung Tunku assemblyman Lau Weng San to check if the council had such a service which needed residents to pay for fogging services.

Lau told reporters on Sunday that the council did not appoint any pest control company to carry out such a service.

“The council conducts its own fogging according to schedule and often gives priority to dengue-prone areas,

“We will never ask our residents to pay for the service,” he said.

Lau said he would check if the pest control company said to be based in Pandan Jaya, Ampang, was genuine.

He added that legal action would be taken by the MBPJ and he would raise the matter in the upcoming council meeting.

“Residents must be aware that the council will never ask residents money for fogging services and if they ever encounter similar cases they can inform the council or check with us by calling MBPJ’s hotline 03-79542020,” he said.