Odisha Police have apprehended a 35-year-old man for allegedly defrauding people by offering them cash loans in exchange for putting up personal valuables, including gold, motorbikes, and cell phones, as collateral, an official said on Friday.
The accused, identified as K Rabindra Reddy, was taken into custody from his home in the Adava locality of Gajapati district on Thursday, acting on a complaint filed by a victim.
Police seized 137 motorbikes, 127 mobile phones, several banking records, and Rs 3.61 lakh in cash from the custody of the accused. The total valuation of the recovered assets is projected to exceed Rs 1 crore, according to Rakesh Sahoo, the Sub-divisional Police Officer (SDPO) of R Udayagiri.
According to the complainant, the victim had handed over his motorcycle, which is valued at roughly Rs 90,000, to the suspect about half a year ago to secure a cash loan of Rs 20,000. Along with the bike, the accused collected the vehicle’s registration papers and forced the victim to sign an empty stamp paper, the police officer explained.
When the victim eventually tried to repay the loan amount to reclaim his motorcycle, the suspect repeatedly dodged his calls before refusing the request to return the vehicle, the officer noted.
The victim further pointed out in his report that a large group of local residents had fallen prey to the exact same fraudulent scheme operated by the suspect.
The police suspect that the accused was also actively engaged in fabricating official records and illegally retaining properties swindled from unsuspecting individuals.
The targeted police search yielded not only the massive collection of two-wheelers and mobile devices but also uncovered numerous vehicle registration certificates, agreements, stamp papers and other documents were seized.
Police have registered a case against Reddy for cheating, criminal breach of trust, property misappropriation, and forgery. Further investigation is underway, the SDPO added.
