4 arrested for Rs 52 lakh credit card fraud | Bhubaneswar News
Rourkela: Police on Friday arrested four persons, including an employee of a private sector bank, for orchestrating a credit card fraud scheme that caused losses exceeding Rs 52 lakh to the bank.
The arrests were made following an extensive investigation after the bank lodged a complaint. The accused allegedly manipulated financial records, forged documents, and conducted unauthorised cash withdrawals.
The primary accused, Md. Tabrez Alam (37), a tailor, reportedly recruited persons for credit card applications by promising easy approvals despite their insufficient income. Working in collaboration with a local tax and accounting firm in Udit Nagar, they allegedly fabricated income tax returns to secure high-limit credit cards.
The bank employee, who was responsible for sourcing credit cards, allegedly ensured these applications cleared the eligibility criteria using forged documents. The cards were then used for cash transactions at merchant establishments in Rourkela.
Investigation revealed that between Sept 2023 and Aug 2024, Tabrez Alam’s account showed suspicious credits of Rs 2.7 crore, while the chartered accountant’s account accumulated Rs 8 crores through various benami accounts.
The other two arrested persons are the proprietor of the tax and accounting services firm and another private firm. Police have seized three POS terminals used in the fraud.
Inspector Khitish Patra, who led the operation with sub-inspectors Siddharth Pradhan and Sampad Mohanty, said, “The investigation is on to identify other possible accomplices. We will also notify relevant agencies to check for similar fraudulent activities.”
The accused allegedly operated by having customers swipe their cards at partner establishments in exchange of cash, which was later converted into EMIs. They collected commission from these transactions before making irregular EMI payments to the bank.
The arrests were made following an extensive investigation after the bank lodged a complaint. The accused allegedly manipulated financial records, forged documents, and conducted unauthorised cash withdrawals.
The primary accused, Md. Tabrez Alam (37), a tailor, reportedly recruited persons for credit card applications by promising easy approvals despite their insufficient income. Working in collaboration with a local tax and accounting firm in Udit Nagar, they allegedly fabricated income tax returns to secure high-limit credit cards.
The bank employee, who was responsible for sourcing credit cards, allegedly ensured these applications cleared the eligibility criteria using forged documents. The cards were then used for cash transactions at merchant establishments in Rourkela.
Investigation revealed that between Sept 2023 and Aug 2024, Tabrez Alam’s account showed suspicious credits of Rs 2.7 crore, while the chartered accountant’s account accumulated Rs 8 crores through various benami accounts.
The other two arrested persons are the proprietor of the tax and accounting services firm and another private firm. Police have seized three POS terminals used in the fraud.
Inspector Khitish Patra, who led the operation with sub-inspectors Siddharth Pradhan and Sampad Mohanty, said, “The investigation is on to identify other possible accomplices. We will also notify relevant agencies to check for similar fraudulent activities.”
The accused allegedly operated by having customers swipe their cards at partner establishments in exchange of cash, which was later converted into EMIs. They collected commission from these transactions before making irregular EMI payments to the bank.
