Odisha Police busts fake gold loan scam; 3 including one from Mirzapur arrested

In a major fraud case, police in Baidyanathpur, Odisha's Ganjam district, arrested three persons on Thursday for allegedly duping six banks of nearly Rs 24 lakh using fake gold ornaments.

The accused have been identified as Abhinav Srivastava of Mirzapur (Uttar Pradesh), Biswajit Kar of Sahadevkhunta (Balasore), and Sheikh Manjur Elahi. 

Police seized imitation gold bangles, earrings, and coated silver from their possession.

According to the complaint, P. Purushottam of Hinjilicut-Badakhande had earlier worked at a prawn factory in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh, where he came into contact with the accused. 

About 18 months ago, they persuaded him to help secure bank loans by pledging ‘old gold jewellery’. Believing their promise of setting up a prawn factory, Purushottam opened accounts in his and his relatives’ names in banks at Berhampur, Hinjilicut, and Mandia Palli. He then mortgaged the jewellery provided by the accused and obtained loans worth over Rs 20 lakh, which he handed over to them.

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The fraud came to light when Purushottam attempted to sell some of the bangles and discovered that they were fake, with only a thin layer of gold plating. Following his complaint, police devised a plan and asked him to call the accused back to Berhampur. Once they arrived, the trio was trapped and arrested.

Police said further investigation is underway to trace the full extent of the racket.