Kolkata: The bank fraud section of the detective department has apprehended eight individuals involved in a complex scheme that defrauded a private bank of Rs 1.2 crore through illicit home loans. The criminals, operating between January 2021 and the end of 2023, utilized a building in Khardah with 11 flats for their fraudulent activities. The primary perpetrator, Pratima Sarkar, a part owner of the building, and other accomplices posed as buyers and sellers, manipulating bank processes to secure loans against forged documents.
Modus Operandi:
- The gang, comprising individuals including Pratima Sarkar, orchestrated a scheme where the building owner posed as the seller, while others assumed the role of buyers.
- They exploited the banking system by obtaining home loans against fake documents, registering six flats in the building 125 times.
- The total fraud amount is estimated to exceed Rs 10 crore, as six other banks have reported similar instances of loan fraud.
Construction and Ownership of Building:
A building with 11 flats was constructed on a four-cottah plot in Khardah. Pratima Sarkar, one of the arrested individuals, is a part owner of the building. The accused fabricated fake registrations for all 11 flats in the building to execute their plan. The private bank, victimized in this fraud, disbursed a housing loan of Rs 1,12,94,712 against forged papers for the purchase of six flats from Manimala Enterprises, owned by Sarkar.
Extent of Fraud:
The fraudulent activities occurred between January 2021 and the end of 2023. At least 12 FIRs indicated that the private bank’s Chowringhee Road branch was deceived into granting home loans based on forged documents. Upon investigation, it was discovered that the flats purchased with the disbursed loan were under the possession of third parties, leading to a total loss of Rs 1.2 crore for the private bank.
The initial five individuals involved in the scheme were arrested on January 12. Subsequently, three more individuals, Golokeswar Mondal (56), Tanmoy Pal (30), and Goutam Modak (46), were apprehended on Tuesday.
