New Delhi, Jul 11 (PTI) The Delhi Police has arrested a 24-year-old man from Punjab for allegedly being part of a cyber fraud syndicate that fraudulently obtained loans worth around Rs 1.6 crore by misusing Aadhaar and PAN details of nearly 50 people, an officer said on Saturday.

The accused, identified as Ajay Kumar, was arrested on Friday. A mobile phone allegedly used in the crime has been recovered from his possession, police said.

The case came to light after a Delhi resident lodged a complaint on June 25, stating that he had started receiving calls from a loan recovery agent demanding EMIs for a personal loan of Rs 4.5 lakh that he had never taken.

Police said the complainant later found that a loan had been fraudulently availed in his name from a company using his PAN details. He also discovered that the mobile number linked to his Aadhaar had been changed without his knowledge, enabling the fraud.

During investigation, police traced the loan amount to a bank account operated by Ajay Kumar. "Technical surveillance and human intelligence led to his arrest. Analysis of his mobile phone allegedly revealed exchanges of the complainant's personal details with his associates before the fraud," a senior police officer said.

During interrogation, the accused allegedly disclosed that he was part of a network that routed fraudulently obtained loan amounts into bank accounts of people willing to allow their accounts to be used in return for a commission. The syndicate also allegedly changed victims' Aadhaar-linked mobile numbers before using their Aadhaar and PAN details to obtain loans from private finance companies.

Police said investigation has so far revealed that documents of around 50 victims were misused to obtain loans worth about Rs 1.6 crore from private non-banking financial companies.

Efforts are underway to trace other members of the racket, identify additional mule accounts and ascertain the full extent of the fraud, police added. PTI BM PRK

Identity theft in loan fraud rackets highlights misuse of Aadhaar, PAN and mule accounts to obtain fraudulent credit. Cyber fraud syndicate allegedly obtained personal loans by misusing Aadhaar and PAN details, including by changing Aadhaar-linked mobile numbers without the victims' knowledge. Police investigation indicates the use of mule accounts to route fraud proceeds and shows misuse of documents of around 50 victims to obtain loans from private non-banking financial companies.