Fake IPS officer, mum defraud banks of Rs20m

KOCHI: With the arrest of a mother of a motherson-duo in connection with swindling of Rs20 million for car loans by faking IPS and Information Officer identities, more banks approached the police with fresh complaints. According to Guruvayur Temple police station Circle Inspector P Krishnan, who is in charge of the investigation, more banks have approached him with similar complaints. On Monday, the manager of Guruvayur branch of State Bank of India (SBI) registered a complaint with the police, saying that the duo had taken two car loans from the bank. However, they did not default monthly repayment of the long-term loans so far, according to SBI manager.

Police had arrested Shyamala Venugopal 58, a native of Thiruvangad in Thalassery in Kannur district, from her house at Bilathikulam in Kozhikode on Sunday. Her son Vipin Karthik, 29, managed to escape, when police surrounded the house.

According to police, while Shyamala posed as an information officer, Vipin posed as an IPS officer working at Kupwara district in Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The duo created fake salary certificates and took 12 loans to the tune of Rs20 million from various banks to buy luxury cars.

The fraud was exposed ater police began investigations based on a complaint filed by the Guruvayur branch manager of Indian Overseas Bank. The duo had taken loans amounting to Rs3 million from the bank to buy two luxury cars.

There is another case that the culprits swindled 97 sovereigns of gold and Rs2.5 million from Indian Overseas Bank Guruvayur branch manager Sudha Devi, who is a native of Kollam.

Shyamala and Vipin managed to forge statements from each bank. They created fake documents showing that they completed repaying the loan in one bank and submited the same in another bank to avail new loans. The two bought luxury cars using the loan and would sell them off for a profit. They managed to purchase 28 cars availing loans from several banks during a span of one-and-a-half years.

Police sources say 12 cars were bought duping banks in Guruvayur alone, and 11 of them were sold to others. The other 16 cars were bought on loans from Kalamassery, Ernakulam, Koyilandy Nadapuram, Thalassery, Kotayam, Trivandrum and Vatakara by the mother and son and resold.

According to latest reports, Vipin Karthik was a chief guest at a police family meeting in Guruvayur. Posing as an IPS officer, he atended the get-together held at Horizon Hotel near Guruvayur Temple police station. The ‘officer’ who distributed prizes to the children of police officers, also spoke on a police officer’s responsibility to the society. Vipin had visited the Guruvayur temple police station many times and was greeted with customary salute and respect.