Fake call centre run by woman-led gang busted in Noida, 8 arrested

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A fake call centre duping people on the pretext of providing loans was busted and eight people, including a woman who was running the operation, were arrested, officials of the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) said.

They said the gang had been operating from a rented office space in the industrial area of sector 63 in Noida for the past six months and is estimated to have duped over 300 people of crores of rupees.

"Eight accused, including the gang's mastermind, have been arrested from Noida for involvement in duping people on the pretext of getting them an online loan from India Bulls Consumer Finance using forged documents that were sent to loan-seekers through Whatsapp," the STF said in a statement.

The gang was busted by the Lucknow unit of the STF under the supervision of Additional Superintendent of Police Vishal Vikram Singh on Thursday.

The STF seized five mobile phones, 17 ATM/credit cards, three laptops, two tablets, 13 pre-activated SIM cards, 13 accounting registers, 75 fake documents and data of more than one lakh customers from the call centre, the officials said.

The forged documents included ID cards issued in the name of India Bulls, loan approval letters and loan confirmation letters, the statement said, adding that loan-seekers were duped in the name of charges for registration, processing fees, GST and insurance against loans among others.

Those arrested have been identified as the gang's mastermind Chhaya Singh, Priya Shukla, Aanchal Chaudhary, Sulekha, Ankit Singh, Vijendra Pratap Singh, Archana Prajapati and Shivani Thakur, according to the statement.

An FIR has been lodged in the case at the local Sector 63 police station in Noida under Indian Penal Code sections 419, 420 (related to cheating), 467, 468, 471 (all related to forgery) and provisions of the Information Technology Act and an investigation is underway, it added.

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