Five individuals were arrested on Tuesday and Wednesday for allegedly cheating a bank out of Rs76.6 lakh by fraudulently availing automobile loans and later disposing of the vehicles, Kolkata Police said.
Based on a complaint lodged by a senior official of the Shakespeare Sarani branch, police identified and arrested Ashikul Sheikh, Somenath Ghosh, Avijit Pal, Saifulla Seikh, and Shankar Gupta.
According to Joint Commissioner (Crime) Rupesh Kumar, each accused played a specific role in the scheme.
Ashikul Sheikh, a resident of Bishnupur in South 24-Parganas, was reportedly one of the masterminds and arranged the fraudulent borrowers.
Somenath Ghosh and Avijit Pal, also from South 24-Parganas, took loans of Rs14 lakh each using forged bank statements and fake income tax returns.
Saifulla Seikh allegedly created all the forged documents used in the application process.
Shankar Gupta, described by police as the kingpin, was responsible for selling the newly purchased vehicles, leading to the bank’s financial loss.
Police said Ashikul Sheikh’s mobile number appeared in the registration details of at least two of the cars, helping link him to the fraud.
The five accused were produced in court on Wednesday and remanded to police custody for further investigation.