ST : Landlord, agent sued over 'lost gold bars'

Jan 11, 2010

Landlord, agent sued over 'lost gold bars'

Tenant's mum claims $100,000 loss after being locked out of unit

By Mavis Toh

A 56-YEAR-OLD woman locked out of her daughter's rented Orchard Road apartment was let in only a week later and alleged that she then found her 20 gold bars missing.

Madam Lim Bee Lian, who lived in the Mount Elizabeth apartment with her husband and daughter Belle Lin, is now taking the landlord, Mr Lee Huay Kok, and his property agent, Mr Lee Wee Hong, to court for her alleged loss, estimated to be $100,000.

Last Oct 2, after having gone to the market, she returned to the unit to see the agent and a locksmith outside it.

In her statement of claim filed by lawyer Chia Boon Teck, she said the agent told her he had a court order to evict the family, and that she should let him in so that the locks could be changed.

He added that the family was to vacate the unit immediately.

Afraid of breaching the law, Madam Lim opened the door for the two men, but refused to leave the unit.

After the locks were changed, the agent threatened to lock her in if she refused to leave.

She contacted her daughter, who was stuck in a meeting but phoned her brother and the police.

Upon his arrival, Madam Lim's son found that the 'court order' was in fact only an unsigned draft letter from the landlord's solicitors.

He then left to attend to other urgent matters.

During this time, Madam Lim tried to retrieve her valuables from the apartment but was unable to reach the top cabinet in the master bedroom.

When Ms Lin finally got to the apartment, her mother, who has hypertension and diabetes, needed to be taken to the hospital for shortness of breath and cold sweat.

Mother and daughter lodged a police report that night and also tried - unsuccessfully - to reach the agent by phone and e-mail.

They were let in only on Oct 8, which was when they found the rectangular gold bars gone, they alleged.

A gold bracelet with diamonds was also missing, they claimed.

Problems with the tenancy started three months into the lease signed in July last year.

Ms Lin said she signed a tenancy agreement on behalf of her employer, the trading firm LVMH Couture International, to rent a place to accommodate its overseas guests and their families.

This was made known to the landlord.

In September, the landlord sent her and LVMH a warning letter, saying the rental agreement had been violated because people other than Ms Lin had been staying there.

Later that month, the property management stopped LVMH's guests from entering the property.

Embarrassed and angered by the incident, Ms Lin moved into the apartment with her parents, and put LVMH's guests in another apartment she rented.

Now, Madam Lim has charged that the landlord and agent have breached the contract and trespassed on the property, resulting in her suffering the alleged loss.

She is also seeking aggravated damages for the fear she felt and injury to her dignity.

The defendants are expected to file their defence by Jan 20.