Gold appraiser arrested for Rs 3.81 crore fake loan fraud

A gold appraiser at a non-banking financial company has been arrested for allegedly conspiring with others to create 683 fake gold loan accounts and secure loans exceeding Rs 3.81 crore using forged documents and artificial gold ornaments, according to the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police. The arrest followed an investigation into the suspected fraud.

The accused, Pankaj Kumar, was employed as a gold appraiser with a private company and was arrested on July 7 following the investigation. According to the EOW, the case was uncovered after the company’s internal audit identified significant irregularities in its gold loan portfolio. Packets of pledged gold ornaments worth approximately Rs 14.11 lakh were missing.

The audit also revealed that 683 fake gold loan accounts had been created between 2022 and 2025 using forged KYC documents, false customer identities, and artificial gold ornaments. Loans totalling about Rs 3.81 crore were fraudulently disbursed based on these accounts, the EOW statement read.

An FIR was registered at the EOW police station in August 2025, and further investigation was taken up.

Police reviewed loan files, appraisal reports, KYC documents, audit records, bank statements, and other financial records during the investigation. They also recorded statements from company officials and other witnesses.

Police stated that Kumar, along with others, certified artificial gold ornaments as genuine to approve fraudulent loans. He also forged identity documents and fabricated loan records to create fake borrower accounts.

“To avoid detection during internal audits, the accused and his associates allegedly continued depositing interest in the fake loan accounts and made false entries in the company’s loan management system to project them as regular and active,” Amit Verma, DCP EOW, said.