Wheeler-dealers in mutiple loan scam

Plot revealed after businessman follows a woman riding his stolen Scooty; police say banks and lending institutions involved

Wheeler-dealers in mutiple loan scam

Plot revealed after businessman follows a woman riding his stolen Scooty; police say banks and lending institutions involved

A city-based businessman, who followed a woman riding his stolen Scooty, stumbled on a scam involving the stealing and selling of mortgaged vehicles.

Based on his information, Frazer Town police recovered vehicles worth Rs 1.5 lakh, stolen by bank recovery agents.

The whistle-blower

Venkatesh, a resident of Rajajinagar, had bought a Scooty a few years back with a Syndicate Bank loan. Venkatesh's bike was stolen a few months back after he cleared his loan.

Venkatesh filed a complaint with Rajajinagar police.

A few days later, Venkatesh noticed a woman riding his Scooty. He followed her to Frazer Town and found out that her name was Pushpa.

He immediately informed the nearby Frazer Town police station. Police rushed and seized the bike and brought Pushpa to the station for questioning.

To their surprise, Pushpa turned out to be innocent. She explained that she had purchased the scooty from Varalakshmi Motors situated in Yeshwanthpur and got her loan from GE Countrywide Finance.

Further investigations led to more skeletons tumbling out. Police discovered that dealers get the registration number of vehicles being financed by banks. They then create fake documents with the same registration number and apply to another bank seeking loan.

Forged documents

In the case of Venkatesh, Varalakshmiu00a0 had forged the documents of his vehicleu00a0 and got a loan under a fictitious name. Though Venkatesh repaid his loan, he still became a defaulter.

When the bank did not get the required amount, they sent the recovery agent to Venkatesh's house. The agent stole the bike and later sold it to Varalakshmi Motors.

Frazer Town police have recovered several vehicles, which are being stolen by recovery agents and sold to different dealers. They are also contemplating action against two financial institutions, allegedly involved in this scam.

Guess who's behind the stealing?

Police suspect private banks and financial institutions to be behind the increase in vehicle thefts in the city. Assistant commissioner of police , (Frazer Town sub division) B B Ashok Kumar said the recovery agents should inform the owner and the local police before seizing the vehicle.

"We will submit a requisition to the police commissioner to issue necessary directions to banks and financial institutions in this regard," he said.

He said they were probing the role of bank officials who leak information about the mortgaged vehicle to dealers.