Loan App fraud in Thiruvananthapuram; Main accused held in Ahmedabad, search for mastermind

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: One of the main accused involved in the loan app fraud in Thiruvananthapuram has been held in Ahmedabad. He has been identified as Parth and was taken into custody from Ahmedabad airport. Another accused identified as Akash Singh Choudhary of Gujarat escaped from the hands of the police. A search has been intensified for him.

A North Indian gang that had set up a fake call center and cheated Americans of crores through the Loan App was taken into custody the other day. 18 North Indians were taken into custody in the raid conducted by the police.

The fake call center started functioning one and a half months ago with about 50 computers and a commercial building of Pavizham Homes near Iris Hospital in Pongumoodu. There were about twenty employees speaking English fluently in the firm.

The fraud was committed after collecting information from 'Lend-Jet' company, which Americans approach for loans, and contacted them. The victims were allegedly persuaded to pay various charges, including operational fees, in US dollars. Police said this is the first case in Kerala in which a loan app scam primarily targeted people in the United States.

Hundreds of SIM cards and mobile phones were seized in the raid. The police clarified that the extent of the fraud can be understood only after examining these and the computers. An expert investigation is required to find out how much money was defrauded. The police also said that the fraud gang had locked the server.

Police also conducted searches at locations where the accused had been staying, including Kovalam. Most of those taken into custody are from Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat. The Cyber police are now trying to access the call centre's server and are investigating whether people from other countries were also targeted.