Twenty-eight individuals, including three employees of a non-banking financial company (NBFC), have been booked for orchestrating a Rs4.13 crore loan fraud using counterfeit documents.
A complaint filed at Rajkot’s University police station accuses a branch manager, a sales manager, and a third-party inspector of facilitating fake loan approvals for 25 ineligible applicants between September 2023 and June 2024.
Chandresh Jobanputra, the legal manager of the NBFC, named Amit Dhrajiya (third-party inspector), Hitendrasinh Zala (branch manager), Akash Vyas (sales manager), and the 25 loan recipients in a complaint citing charges of fraud, forgery, and criminal conspiracy.
The NBFC reportedly maintains a stringent approval process involving credit score checks, income verification, asset assessments, and physical inspections. The sales manager initiates the process, the branch manager oversees third-party inspections, and final approvals are granted post-verification.
The complaint alleges that Zala, Vyas, and Dhrajiya manipulated these processes to secure loans for unqualified applicants using forged Panchayat documents and fake machinery purchase invoices. The employees allegedly received commissions ranging from 5–10% per loan for submitting falsified reports and approving the loans.
The scam came to light after numerous loan defaults raised red flags, prompting an internal review that uncovered fraudulent paperwork and insider involvement. Police arrested Zala, Dhrajiya, and three loan recipients. The search is ongoing for Vyas and the remaining suspects.
Investigation officer Haresh Patel confirmed that the arrested individuals confessed to accepting commissions in return for enabling the scam.