Knowledge Park police on Saturday arrested five persons involved in bank loan fraud operating from a car in Greater Noida.
The suspects would advertise low cost bank loans through social media and would convince people to pay a processing fee for the loan in advance, said police. Once the money was transferred, the suspects ceased all communication with the victims. To avoid electronic surveillance, the suspects would keep moving in the car.
The suspects were identified as Rabupura resident Tinku Bhati (25), Bulandshahr resident Jasmendra Pal Singh (24), Ankit (27) from Rajasthan, Ankul (24) and Ashish (25) who are from Aligarh. They allegedly met while searching for a job in Greater Noida and lived in a rented accommodation.
Varun Pawar, station house officer (SHO) of Knowledge Park police station, said, “We had no complainant in this case. On Saturday evening the police team was conducting a routine checking drive near Knowledge Park T-Point. They stopped a Volkswagen Polo car for checking and found the five persons in the vehicle,” he said.
Pawar said the team found 15 mobile phones, two laptops, three debit cards, one pen drive, ₹1,000 from their possession. “The police team found the 15 mobile phones unusual. They first believed the suspects were mobile phone snatchers and brought them to police station for questioning,” he said.
Police said the suspects were questioned separately and they admitted to running a call centre from the car. “They used to advertise on social media to facilitate loan at minimum interest rates. They pretended to be representatives of a finance company. Once a person called in, the suspects sought their identity cards asked him to pay ₹2,500, and sometimes more, as loan processing fee. Once the money was transferred, the suspects used to block their numbers and stop all communication,” he said. The suspects are believed to have cheated over 200 people in the last six months.
{{/usCountry}}Police said the suspects were questioned separately and they admitted to running a call centre from the car. “They used to advertise on social media to facilitate loan at minimum interest rates. They pretended to be representatives of a finance company. Once a person called in, the suspects sought their identity cards asked him to pay ₹2,500, and sometimes more, as loan processing fee. Once the money was transferred, the suspects used to block their numbers and stop all communication,” he said. The suspects are believed to have cheated over 200 people in the last six months.
{{/usCountry}}Police said the seized Volkswagen Polo is registered in the name of a Ghaziabad resident. “Primary investigation shows the suspects had got the car financed using a fake identity. We are investigating the matter from all angles,” Pawar said.
A case has been registered against them under Section 420 (cheating) of IPC and Section 66 of the IT Act. The suspects were produced in court and sent to judicial custody.
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