KUALA LUMPUR: A Chinese national who came to Malaysia for a business deal has been missing for over a year.
Zhang Yong Tang, 24, entered Malaysia in April last year to do business with two individuals identified as Li and Zhang.
The man was then forced to work with an illegal syndicate here before he was allegedly framed for stealing money.
According to one Steven Pang, who claims to be a family friend, Zhang was arrested by Klang police on June 17 last year for not having documents.
"He entered Malaysia and all his documents were seized by the syndicate. He called his mother a few days later and told her what had happened," he told reporters at the MCA Public Services and Complaints Department on Thursday (Aug 17).
He said checks with the police revealed that Yong Tang was picked up by Li and Zhang on July 5 last year.
"Three days later he was found half naked but alive inside a large garbage bin near a condominium in Taman OUG by a cleaner.
"The cleaner lent him a mobile phone and he called his mother again. She was frantic and called me to help," he said, adding that he managed to track down the worker the next day and went back to the scene but Yong Tang was no longer there.
Pang said the victim's mother claimed she then received several calls between July 11 and July 16 demanding more than RM3mil cash or her son would be killed.
He said a police report was lodged at the Jinjang police station on Dec 30.
Department head Datuk Seri Michael Chong urged the public to come forward with any information they had on the case.
"We are worried that the man is in grave danger. He has not been seen or heard from in over a year. It is quite possible that the syndicate has silenced him or smuggled him out of the country to work elsewhere," he said.
He urged those with information to contact his department at 03-2203 3888.
