Man Gets $218 Trillion Phone Bill
A Malaysian man said he nearly fainted when he recieved a $218
trillion phone bill and was ordered to pay up within 10 days or
face prosecution, a newspaper reported Monday.
Yahaya Wahab said he disconnected his late father's phone line in
January after he died and settled the 84 ringgit ($23) bill, the
New Straits Times reported.
But Telekom Malaysia later sent him a 806,400,000,000,000.01
ringgit ($218 trillion) bill for recent telephone calls along with
orders to settle within 10 days or face legal proceedings, the
newspaper reported.
It wasn't clear whether the bill was a mistake, or if Yahaya's
father's phone line was used illegally after after his death.
"If the company wants to seek legal action as mentioned in the
letter, I'm ready to face it," the paper quoted Yahaya as saying.
"In fact, I can't wait to face it," he said.
Yahaya, from northern Kedah state, received a notice from the
company's debt-collection agency in early April, the paper said.
Yahaya said he nearly fainted when he saw the new bill.
Government-linked Telekom Malaysia Bhd. is the country's largest
telecommunications company.
A company official, who declined to be identified as she was not
authorized to speak to the media, said Telekom Malaysia was aware
of Yahaya's case and would address it. She did not provide further
details.
