In connection with a series of online frauds, the Thrissur City Police made an arrest on Thursday. They apprehended a young man, 28-year-old Karthik, also known as Gulan, who hails from Chirakkal in Thrissur. Karthik had posed as an employee of a private loan lending firm and swindled approximately sixty people by enticing them with instant personal loans. He was arrested during an investigation into a case where he duped a man from Chavakkad of Rs 75,000, offering a personal loan over the phone. It is estimated that Karthik amassed nearly Rs 40 lakhs by defrauding around 60 individuals.
Karthik’s modus operandi involved targeting individuals seeking interest-free personal loans to purchase affordable mobile phones from major mobile phone stores. He obtained their personal information through connections with private bank staff at these stores. Impersonating a private bank employee, he visited economically disadvantaged households, describing the process of securing personal loans without interest. After gaining their trust, he had them sign documents and provided them with his mobile phone number.
Following this, he would contact the victims and inform them that their personal loan had been approved, sending an OTP to their phone. Subsequently, Karthik would claim that the loan had been sanctioned and that the amount would be credited to the customer’s bank account within 15 days. Despite collecting the customer’s bank account details, Karthik transferred the approved funds to his own account.
When customers realized that the funds hadn’t reached their accounts and contacted Karthik, he refused responsibility and even threatened to file a police report if they persisted. Eventually, legitimate employees of the money lending firm approached the customers in person and initiated legal proceedings against them for defaulting on payments.
Karthik’s illicit gains allowed him to purchase expensive mobile phones, which he then sold at the same shops with the assistance of shop employees and private bank staff. These accomplices received substantial commissions for their involvement in the fraud. As for Karthik, he pocketed the remainder of the proceeds while aiding the shop and private bank employees in achieving their sales and loan targets to earn additional incentives.
A senior officer from the Thrissur City Police expressed surprise at the extent of this networked crime, with many complaints filed against the arrested individual in various stations across Thrissur district. A thorough investigation will soon commence to apprehend all individuals involved in this extensive network. The arrest was made by a police team led by Chavakkad Inspector Vipin K Venugopal, with the cooperation of Thrissur City Crime Squad members and under the direction of Thrissur City Police Commissioner Ankit Asokan IPS. Sub-inspectors NG Suvrithakumar and PM Rafi, assistant sub-inspector TV Jeevan, and senior civil police officers Hamd, Sarath, and Ligesh played crucial roles in the operation.
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