Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi

Udupi, Jan 7: In a shocking gold loan scam in Udupi, complainants were duped into paying Rs 6 lac for fake gold. Karthik (32), a field officer at Dhan Ganapati Gold & Diamond Finance, Mysuru, fell victim to the elaborate fraud. The company facilitates the retrieval of pledged gold by clearing loans or purchasing gold on behalf of customers.

On January 2, 2025, Karthik and his colleague Kavan received a call from Abbas, who claimed to have gold stored at various societies in Udupi. The duo travelled to Udupi on January 3 and met Abbas near Uchila in Kaup taluk to discuss the gold retrieval process.

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Following Abbas’s instructions, they transferred Rs 6 lac as an advance via RTGS to his account at Kundapura Federal Bank. They retrieved 44 grams of gold from Belapu Agriculture Co-operative Society in the presence of accused Mohammad Haneef and an unidentified person. They also obtained 16 grams of gold from Guru Nityananda Co-operative Society, where accused Mohammad Yaseen was present, and 32 grams from Murtedara Co-operative Society in Santhekatte.

The accused then instructed them to wait at the Udupi bus station while more gold was purportedly being retrieved from Kundapura. When there was no further contact, the complainants became suspicious and visited a gold testing shop in Udupi. It was revealed that the gold provided was fake, confirming that they had been deceived.

A complaint has been lodged at the Udupi city police station. The case is registered under Crime No. 5/2025 and is being investigated under Sections 318(4), 318(2), along with 3(5) BNS.