CHENNAI: Beware if you get a call promising a loan with a low interest rate!
Sleuths of the bank fraud division of the Central Crime Branch (CCB) have arrested three men who ran a fake call centre that swindled people.
The three kingpins have been identified as R Thiyagarajan, 38, of Salem and his associates V Gopinath, 28, of Saidapet and R Manibala, 22, of Villupuram. Police said Thiyagarajan is associated with Selva alias Selva Kumar who was arrested in March this year in a similar case.
Based on a tip-off, the police team raided two call centres situated at L B Road in Adyar and Perungudi.
"The trio had allegedly appointed more than 50 staff who would make calls in the guise of mediators for bank and other financial institutions offering personal loans. They would ask the victims to
deposit a sum of money to avail a loan in lakhs and later transfer the money to their accounts. For instance, they would ask the victim to deposit Rs 50,000 to maintain a minimum balance for a Rs 5 lakh loan. Once, the bank details are obtained they would send an OTP and transfer the money to their e-wallets," said the police officer.
Later, they would call the customer and say the loan was rejected due to lack of documents and then switch off their phones.
Based on complaints filed by more than 365 people in similar cases claiming that around Rs 1 crore had been swindled, the CCB has arrested as many as 26 people so far. Further investigations are on.
Police also warned the public to stay vigilant against such fraudsters.