Two money lenders booked for extortion, arrested

The Pune police crime branch has arrested two moneylenders for demanding ₹14 lakh in lieu of a loan of ₹2 lakh given to a client

The Pune police crime branch has arrested two moneylenders for demanding ₹14 lakh in lieu of a loan of ₹2 lakh given to a client. The accused also threatened to kill him and took possession of a vehicle belonging to another person who stood as the guarantor.

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The Anti Extortion Cell (AEC) of Pune police arrested Umesh Ghare, a resident of Sinhagad road and Sandeep Ghare, a resident of Warje Malwadi in connection with the case.

According to the AEC officials, the victim needed money and had taken a loan from the duo in 2019. Umesh had taken a signed blank cheque from the victim and took possession of a four-wheeler as against the loan issued at the rate of 10 per cent interest.

The victim could not pay the loan in time following which the accused asked him to pay the principal amount with interest for 24 months totaling ₹14 lakh. They went to his, destroyed furniture and issued threats to his relatives seeking the loan amount with interest, AEC officials said.

Based on the information, a police team attached to AEC raided their premises and recovered blank cheque, documents, blank papers, Aadhaar card, stamp paper, and other incriminating documents from their possession.

The AEC officials have appealed to the citizens to lodge complaints against the accused citing that they were allegedly involved in full-scale money-lending business and might have harassed many people.

The citizens harassed can approach the crime branch or the local police station of their residence, police said.