In yet another apparent case of missing money, police are probing a lettings agency after landlords complained that thousands of pounds owed to them have allegedly not been paid.
There are also serious concerns for the welfare and whereabouts of the owner.
Detectives from Kingston CID in Surrey are investigating the claims from 15 landlords against Jin’s Lettings in New Malden.
The ultra-smart Jin’s office was reportedly visited by police on May 12 when they acted on a warrant and seized documents. No arrests were made. The business was set up in 1990, according to its website, and appears to have been very successful.
It is thought that the owner, Jin Hardy, originally from Korea, may have been taken seriously ill. She has apparently not been seen by her neighbours for some weeks.
Simon Newman, who worked in the lettings office from last November until a few weeks ago, told the Surrey Comet newspaper in April that Mrs Hardy had suffered a stroke.
He said: “It’s her function to pay rent and process deposits and she hasn’t been able to.”
Landlord Shehzaad Mussa, 29, from Slough, who has known Mrs Hardy for 15 years, said he was owed £5,000. Mr Mussa said Mrs Hardy told him she was seriously ill, but would get his rent money to him as soon as she could.
He said: “I understand if she is ill, but I even offered her help. It is a big disappointment from someone who we have known for so long. We do not know where she is.”
Another landlord, Huma Shah from New Malden, said she was owed three months of rent and deposit money worth £6,850.
Another landlord, who did not want to be named, said she was owed £2,025 of deposit money. She said she last saw Mrs Hardy on January 8, when signing a tenancy agreement and spoke to her over the phone in the first week of March. She said: “We do not know if she is even in the country now.”
The office phone was disconnected when Landlord Today rang the number.
A police spokesman said: “At present we are still trying to determine the number of people who may have been affected and confirm the whereabouts of monies paid to the agency.
“At this stage we would appeal to the owner of Jin’s Lettings, Myoung Hardy, also known as Jin Hardy, to contact Kingston police in order to assist us with inquiries.”
Police are also asking landlords with a complaint to tell them how much they are owed.
Jin Hardy is said to have arrived in the UK in 1975 and set up Jin’s Lettings some 15 years later.
The police investigation began after a frustrated landlord who had not received rent money since January posted his concerns in April on a community website. The post attracted responses from several other angry landlords.
The lengthy discussion thread directed landlords to report their cases to police and has since moved to a closed online forum.
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