Should the en bloc craze comes back, this should serve as a warning to people who’re up to mischief for capital gains.

Businessman accused of vandalising property at East Coast estate

WHEN the possibility of a collective sale for Laguna Park was announced in December 2007, some residents held back, hoping this would drive up the estate’s value.

But things turned ugly later at the East Coast area condominium, which was hit by a spate of vandalism cases after several residents opposed the sale. Cars belonging to residents known to have been against the sale were splashed with paint or scratched, while mailboxes were found with glue in their keyholes.

Still, many residents of the 667,000 square-foot estate were shocked to learn that their estate management committee chairman, Mr Lee Kok Leong, had been arrested last August on suspicion of perpetrating these acts.

During a brief appearance in court yesterday, the 62-year-old businessman, dressed in a white long-sleeved shirt and black jeans, stood emotionless as he was charged with two counts of mischief.

According to court documents, Mr Lee is accused of inserting glue into the padlock, rear gate keyholes and main wooden door of a flat at Block 5000E of Laguna Park at 12.44am on Aug 25 last year.

He also allegedly vandalised the front and rear wooden door keyholes of another flat on the same floor.

The damages amounted to $590. – Source, Today

Still, I’m quite skeptical of Laguna Park going through the sale now during this bad economy times. Given a 667,000 sqft massive size land and most developers are still stuck with their launches of new projects, I can’t shortlist any developer or developers who would be willing to come in at this time.

No verdict is out yet for Mr. Lee, but this will set the record straight for people who’re thinking of forcing their residents out in the next en bloc fever.