SINGAPORE: A house renovation that was once a dream turned into a nightmare because of a contractor who suddenly disappeared and left the project unfinished. A couple in their fifties found a renovation contractor through TikTok, but unfortunately lost S$16,000 due to the contractor’s scam.
The 54-year-old woman reported to Shin Min Daily News that she contacted the renovation contractor back in January after seeing an advertisement on the said social media platform. They hope to have epoxy flooring installed in their new home, and deposited S$6,000 when both parties agreed on the project date and price.
At first, everything went smoothly until the contractor claimed that the electrician hired by the woman kept going in and out of the unit, making it impossible to finish the floorwork by the proposed scheduled date. With this, the couple had no choice but to suspend the other projects and focus on replacing the flooring.
The initial completion date of the project was on Feb 1, but it was extended to Feb 8. The contractor then demanded payment for the project that happened on Jan 19, 22, 29, and Feb 6, totalling $10,000.
The couple was worried that the renovation would not be done until they transferred the money, so they paid the contractor. However, the said contractor had not completed the project by the proposed deadline, and the flooring was only about 30% complete. They also claimed that the contractor left their group chat and became unreachable, which prompted them to call the police. The police confirmed the case.
When reporters visited the contractor’s registered address, they discovered that the company door was locked and the room was empty. A nearby shopkeeper also shared that he has not seen them recently.
Other related news
In similar news related to scams, there was a report where a female college student bought a game console online from a friend, but did not receive anything from him.
More so, the suspect also managed to embezzle more than S$260,000 from her on different occasions, and used the money to pay off gambling debts and for his personal expenses.
Read more about the story here.
