Panvel City Police arrested four people after busting an alleged fake loan call centre in Karanjade, Navi Mumbai. The suspects allegedly posed as finance company representatives and demanded processing fees, insurance and GST from victims. Police seized electronic devices, SIM cards, bank cards and cash worth Rs 3.95 lakh.

Police arrested four suspects after raiding an alleged fake loan call centre operating from a rented flat in Karanjade | AI Generated Representational Image

Navi Mumbai, August 25, 2026: The Panvel City Police have busted an inter-state gang allegedly cheating citizens by promising loans in the name of various finance companies and demanding money under the pretext of processing fees, insurance, holding charges and GST.

Four persons were arrested after police raided a fake call centre operating from a rented flat in Karanjade, and seized electronic devices, bank cards, SIM cards and cash worth Rs 3.95 lakh.

The accused have been identified as Vijay Babu Bhandari (36), Tushar Arun Pingle (34), Rohit Rangappa Gowda (21) and Darshan Umashankar (21). They were allegedly operating the racket from Room No. 401 of Nilgiri Apartment in Sector R-4, Karanjade.

Fake Call Centre Raided

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Police received confidential information that a group was operating a call centre from a rented flat using laptops, mobile phones and the internet. Acting on the information, a joint team of the Panvel City Police Station, Navi Mumbai Cyber Police Station and Kalamboli Police Station raided the premises at around 7 pm on August 21 and arrested the four accused.

According to police, the accused concealed their identities and contacted citizens while posing as representatives of different finance companies.

They allegedly lured victims by promising quick loan approvals and initially collected processing fees. They then demanded additional amounts citing insurance, holding charges, GST and other reasons.

After victims transferred the money to specified bank accounts or through scanners, the accused allegedly failed to provide the loans and switched to other demands or stopped responding.

Police Warn Against Loan Scams

“Citizens should be cautious of callers who promise instant loans and then demand processing fees, insurance or other charges. People should verify the credentials of the financial institution and avoid transferring money to unknown bank accounts or scanners,” a police officer said.

The police seized three laptops, 15 mobile phones, 31 SIM cards, seven debit cards belonging to different banks and persons, Rs 74,400 in cash, two account books, a diary, a Wi-Fi router and a network terminal device. The total value of the seized material is Rs 3,95,500.

Investigation Underway

Police are investigating the number of people allegedly cheated by the gang, the total amount collected and the involvement of other persons. The seized mobile phones, laptops, SIM cards and bank-related material are being examined to establish the extent of the racket.

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The operation was carried out under the guidance of Deputy Commissioner of Police Rashmi Nandedkar and Assistant Commissioner of Police Mathur Bhujbal by Senior Police Inspector Bala Kumbhar, Police Inspectors Shakir Patel and Abhijit Abhang, Assistant Police Inspector Ajit Biradar and their teams, with officers from the Cyber Police Station and Kalamboli Police Station.

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