A businessman from Bhopal’s Gautam Nagar area became the victim of a sophisticated fraud involving SIM card blocking and the unauthorized issuance of a cheque book, leading to a loss of Rs 3.81 lakh from his bank account.
According to Gautam Nagar Police, the victim, 35-year-old Kuldeep Parlani, who operates a business named Gaurav Enterprises, reported that an unknown individual fraudulently obtained a cheque book linked to his Union Bank of India account. One of the cheques was then used to carry out an RTGS transaction worth ?3.81 lakh, which was used to purchase gold coins from a local jewellery store.
The fraud remained undetected initially because Kuldeep did not receive any SMS alerts or notifications regarding the transaction. Upon contacting the bank, he was informed that his registered mobile number was unreachable, as the SIM card had been blocked—a deliberate move by the fraudster to prevent detection.
Following the complaint, police launched an investigation and examined CCTV footage from areas around the bank and jewellery store. Surveillance videos reportedly show suspicious individuals involved in the process of fraudulently acquiring the cheque book.
In a major lead, investigators suspect that this incident may be linked to a similar fraud reported in Kohefiza, another area of Bhopal. A suspect named Anshul is already under scrutiny in that case, and authorities believe a larger gang may be operating across multiple locations using similar methods.