It is getting increasingly easy for us to meet new people all over the world today thanks to the growing number of social apps that allow us to do so. However, one should always, always practise caution when meeting new people, especially those whom you’ve gotten to know online.
This 30-year-old Taiwanese tourist came to Malaysia for a holiday as he wanted to spend some time with his Malaysian girlfriend who lives in Bandar Sunway. Kevin Chang Ping Yang arrived in Malaysia on July 15 to meet with Wong, his 26-year-old girlfriend.
While he was here, he also took the opportunity to make a new friend, identified only as Victoria on WeChat. Not long after that, they had their first meeting but when they went on a second outing, Chang suffered terrible consequences.
According to NST, Chang had met Victoria when he was frustrated with his girlfriend after they had an argument. He used his WeChat app to look for people nearby and befriended Victoria. On July 25, they arranged to meet for the second time after she messaged him around midnight asking for tea.
That’s when things took a turn for the worse as Kevin was robbed, attacked and stripped naked during the encounter.
Kevin explained, “We chatted a bit after the first day meet and then she called me out for a drink after a couple of days. She picked me up from my girlfriend’s condo and brought me to a dark, isolated place in an industrial park somewhere in Puchong.”
The Star reports that Kevin said, “When I was in the car, she suddenly asked me to take off my glasses but without them I can’t see because I am short-sighted. I complied, but felt rather insecure as I couldn’t see. When we reached the scene, Victoria asked me to kiss and hug her. I did so but a few minutes after that, suddenly, three armed guys came into the car.”
“They were armed with razor blades, a baseball bat and pepper sprays, which they used to attack me. Two of them sat behind and kept slashing me while another opened the door and sprayed the pepper spray at my face before they dragged me out of the car and stripped me.”
He was bleeding profusely after the 1am attack and was left naked but he had the presence of mind to save himself. Luckily, a good Samaritan in the form of an elderly man offered him assistance. “I got help from an elderly man who gave me a towel and T-shirt to cover myself before we returned to the scene to look for Victoria but I only found my pants. I couldn’t call anyone as well because my phone was also gone.”
The robbers made off with about RM10,000 of valuables, which included two phones, a gold chain and a silver bracelet, as well as a condominium access card.
He had to receive 53 stitches for his wounds and lodged a police report shortly after. He met Victoria at the police station but was surprised to find that none of her belongings were taken and she did not sustain any injuries. This roused his suspicions and he began to doubt Victoria.
“This brought doubt in me and even her report is inconsistent. There are so many unanswered questions and doubts whether the incident was a set up,” he said.
He asked the police to make a thorough investigation many times but to no avail. Chang lodged an official complaint at the Taiwan Cultural Centre earlier but was referred to the Chinese embassy because Malaysia does not have a local consulate.
Frustrated, he didn’t give up and finally went to look for Datuk Seri Michael Chong at MCA Public Services and Complaints Department for help. They held a press conference where Chang related the whole incident while accompanied by his girlfriend.
Remember to always be careful when meeting people you don’t know well, no matter if you’re a guy or a girl!
Also read: Malaysian Guy Gets Scammed by Pretty Girl When Using WeChat’s “People Nearby” Function